Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK Stock Holdings Trimmed by Pallas Capital Advisors LLC

Key Points

• Pallas Capital Advisors LLC has reduced its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 40.8% in the second quarter, now holding 58,541 shares valued at approximately $4.63 million.
• Merck reported $2.13 EPS for its latest quarter, surpassing analysts' expectations, while providing a FY 2025 guidance of 8.870-8.970 EPS.
• The company recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.81 per share, equating to an annualized yield of 4.0%, with a dividend payout ratio of 49.92%.

Pallas Capital Advisors LLC reduced its position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 40.8% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 58,541 shares of the company's stock after selling 40,292 shares during the quarter. Pallas Capital Advisors LLC's holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $4,634,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of MRK. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 29.5% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 38,278 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,808,000 after acquiring an additional 8,710 shares during the period. American Assets Inc. acquired a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $398,000. Visionary Wealth Advisors boosted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 5.9% in the fourth quarter. Visionary Wealth Advisors now owns 12,571 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,251,000 after acquiring an additional 697 shares during the period. Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI boosted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 27.2% in the fourth quarter. Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI now owns 593,787 shares of the company's stock valued at $59,070,000 after acquiring an additional 126,790 shares during the period. Finally, Waverly Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 47.0% in the fourth quarter. Waverly Advisors LLC now owns 143,718 shares of the company's stock valued at $14,297,000 after acquiring an additional 45,926 shares during the period. 76.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:MRK opened at $81.07 on Wednesday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a one year low of $73.31 and a one year high of $119.38. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $82.93 and a 200-day moving average of $82.66. The company has a market capitalization of $202.50 billion, a PE ratio of 12.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.83 and a beta of 0.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 1.17 and a current ratio of 1.42.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 29th. The company reported $2.13 EPS 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 the consensus estimate of $15.92 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2025 guidance at 8.870-8.970 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate 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 given a dividend of $0.81 per share. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.0%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 15th. Merck & Co., Inc.'s dividend payout ratio is 49.92%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have commented on MRK. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price 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. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price 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. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald downgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from an "overweight" rating to a "cautious" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 20th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating, twelve have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $107.44.

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.

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