Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK Stake Lessened by IFM Investors Pty Ltd

Key Points

• IFM Investors Pty Ltd has reduced its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.8% in Q1, now holding 485,085 shares worth approximately $43.5 million.
• Merck reported earnings of $2.13 per share for the recent quarter, beating expectations, although revenue fell short of analyst estimates at $15.81 billion.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.81 per share, with a yield of 3.8%, to be paid on October 7th.

IFM Investors Pty Ltd lessened its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 0.8% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 485,085 shares of the company's stock after selling 3,764 shares during the period. IFM Investors Pty Ltd's holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $43,541,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in MRK. Barnes Dennig Private Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the first quarter worth $27,000. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the first quarter valued at $36,000. Spurstone Advisory Services LLC bought a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter valued at about $37,000. Minot DeBlois Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter worth about $45,000. Finally, Mpwm Advisory Solutions LLC bought a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter worth about $45,000. Institutional investors own 76.07% of the company's stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:MRK opened at $84.71 on Wednesday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $73.31 and a fifty-two week high of $119.38. The stock has a market capitalization of $211.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.86 and a beta of 0.37. 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 business's fifty day moving average price is $82.78 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $82.95.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The company reported $2.13 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates 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 company had revenue of $15.81 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.92 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2025 guidance at 8.870-8.970 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

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 given 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 3.8%. Merck & Co., Inc.'s payout ratio is 49.92%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MRK has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Cantor Fitzgerald downgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from an "overweight" rating to a "cautious" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 20th. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective 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. Citigroup restated a "neutral" rating and set a $84.00 price objective (down previously from $115.00) on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Wednesday, May 14th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $97.00 to $90.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $107.44.

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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