Great Lakes Advisors LLC Increases Stock Holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Key Points

• Great Lakes Advisors LLC increased its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 1.2%, owning 1,154,959 shares valued at approximately $103 million as of the end of the latest quarter.
• Merck's stock performance includes a recent earnings report revealing $2.13 EPS for the quarter, surpassing estimates, and a quarterly dividend of $0.81 will be paid on October 7th.
• Analysts show mixed sentiments with Cantor Fitzgerald downgrading Merck to "cautious," while the consensus rating remains a "Hold" with an average price target of $107.44.

Great Lakes Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 1.2% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,154,959 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 13,648 shares during the period. Merck & Co., Inc. makes up approximately 0.9% of Great Lakes Advisors LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 27th biggest position. Great Lakes Advisors LLC's holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $103,478,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Brighton Jones LLC increased its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 29.5% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 38,278 shares of the company's stock worth $3,808,000 after purchasing an additional 8,710 shares during the period. American Assets Inc. purchased a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter worth about $398,000. Guardian Wealth Advisors LLC NC increased its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 12.7% during the fourth quarter. Guardian Wealth Advisors LLC NC now owns 9,304 shares of the company's stock worth $926,000 after purchasing an additional 1,052 shares during the period. Humankind Investments LLC increased its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 22.2% during the fourth quarter. Humankind Investments LLC now owns 28,909 shares of the company's stock worth $2,876,000 after purchasing an additional 5,248 shares during the period. Finally, K2 Principal Fund L.P. purchased a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter worth about $1,296,000. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have issued reports on MRK. Citigroup reiterated 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. Cantor Fitzgerald lowered shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from an "overweight" rating to a "cautious" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 20th. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $99.00 to $98.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $97.00 to $90.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating, twelve have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $107.44.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Down 0.7%

Shares of MRK stock traded down $0.55 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $84.06. 11,567,946 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 11,077,182. The business's fifty day moving average is $82.81 and its two-hundred day moving average is $82.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 1.42 and a quick ratio of 1.17. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12-month low of $73.31 and a 12-month high of $119.38. The firm has a market capitalization of $209.96 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.95, a P/E/G ratio of 0.87 and a beta of 0.37.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The company reported $2.13 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.03 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $15.81 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates 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, research analysts expect that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

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

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.