Maseco LLP Takes Position in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Key Points

• Maseco LLP acquired 5,862 shares of Merck & Co., Inc. ($MRK) in Q2, valued at approximately $464,000.
• Merck reported $2.13 EPS for the last quarter, exceeding estimates by $0.10, while setting FY 2025 EPS guidance at 8.870-8.970.
• The company’s quarterly dividend of $0.81 per share will be issued on October 7th, representing an annualized dividend yield of 4.1%.

Maseco LLP acquired a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 5,862 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $464,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional 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 first quarter worth about $27,000. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC increased its position 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 worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 221 shares during the period. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the first quarter worth about $36,000. Fiduciary Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the first quarter worth about $48,000. Finally, MJT & Associates Financial Advisory Group Inc. acquired a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the first quarter worth about $48,000. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Merck & Co., Inc. Trading Down 0.6%

NYSE:MRK opened at $79.89 on Wednesday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $73.31 and a fifty-two week high of $116.26. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 1.42 and a quick ratio of 1.17. The stock has a market capitalization of $199.54 billion, a PE ratio of 12.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.83 and a beta of 0.37. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $82.69 and its 200-day simple moving average is $82.23.

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, beating the consensus estimate of $2.03 by $0.10. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 41.05% and a net margin of 25.79%.The business had revenue of $15.81 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $15.92 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2025 guidance at 8.870-8.970 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 7th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.81 per share. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.1%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 15th. Merck & Co., Inc.'s payout ratio is 49.92%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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

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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