Legacy Advisory Services LLC Invests $403,000 in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Key Points

• Legacy Advisory Services LLC has made a new investment in Merck & Co., Inc., purchasing 4,494 shares valued at approximately $403,000 during the first quarter.
• Institutional investors own 76.07% of Merck's stock, highlighting significant interest from large investment firms.
• Merck announced a quarterly dividend of $0.81 per share, with an annualized yield of 3.9%, scheduled to be paid on October 7th.

Legacy Advisory Services LLC purchased a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 4,494 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $403,000.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Barnes Dennig Private Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Spurstone Advisory Services LLC acquired a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $37,000. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Minot DeBlois Advisors LLC bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter valued at $45,000. Finally, Mpwm Advisory Solutions LLC bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter valued at $45,000. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have issued reports on MRK. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on 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. Cantor Fitzgerald lowered Merck & Co., Inc. from an "overweight" rating to a "cautious" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 20th. Citigroup reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and set a $84.00 price target (down from $115.00) on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $97.00 to $90.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating, twelve have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $107.44.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

MRK opened at $84.11 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $210.10 billion, a PE ratio of 12.96, a P/E/G ratio of 0.87 and a beta of 0.37. The company has a quick ratio of 1.17, a current ratio of 1.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $82.72 and a 200-day simple moving average of $82.93. Merck & Co., Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $73.31 and a fifty-two week high of $119.38.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 29th. The company reported $2.13 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.03 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $15.81 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.92 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 41.05% and a net margin of 25.79%. 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 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 7th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.81 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 15th. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.9%. Merck & Co., Inc.'s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 49.92%.

About Merck & Co., Inc.

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.

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