Lecap Asset Management Ltd. Has $1.39 Million Stock Position in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Key Points

• Lecap Asset Management Ltd. reduced its stock holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 26.3% in Q2, now owning 17,574 shares valued at approximately $1.39 million.
• Merck reported earnings per share of $2.13 for its last quarter, beating estimates, but its revenue of $15.81 billion was slightly below expectations of $15.92 billion.
• The company is set to pay a quarterly dividend of $0.81 on October 7th, translating to an annualized dividend yield of 3.6%.

Lecap Asset Management Ltd. lowered its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 26.3% in the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 17,574 shares of the company's stock after selling 6,278 shares during the period. Lecap Asset Management Ltd.'s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $1,391,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in MRK. Legend Financial Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the second quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Barnes Dennig Private Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the first quarter valued at $27,000. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC increased its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 141.7% in the first quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 377 shares of the company's stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 221 shares during the period. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the first quarter valued at $36,000. Finally, MJT & Associates Financial Advisory Group Inc. bought a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the first quarter valued at $48,000. Institutional investors own 76.07% of the company's stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

MRK stock opened at $90.13 on Thursday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12-month low of $73.31 and a 12-month high of $114.60. The company has a current ratio of 1.42, a quick ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $82.68 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $81.77. The stock has a market capitalization of $225.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.89, a PEG ratio of 0.86 and a beta of 0.37.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 29th. The company reported $2.13 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.03 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $15.81 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $15.92 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 25.79% and a return on equity of 41.05%. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2025 guidance at 8.870-8.970 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 7th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 15th will be issued a $0.81 dividend. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.6%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 15th. Merck & Co., Inc.'s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 49.92%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $97.00 to $90.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 30th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $99.00 to $98.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. Finally, Berenberg Bank lowered shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $100.00 to $90.00 in a research note on Wednesday, September 17th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating, thirteen have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $106.41.

Merck & Co., Inc. Profile

Merck & Co, Inc is a health care company, which engages in the provision of health solutions through its prescription medicines, vaccines, biologic therapies, animal health, and consumer care products. It operates through the following segments: Pharmaceutical, Animal Health, and Other. The Pharmaceutical segment includes human health pharmaceutical and vaccine products.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding MRK? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.