Sandhill Capital Partners LLC Has $4.16 Million Stock Position in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Key Points

• Sandhill Capital Partners LLC increased its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 8.4% during the first quarter, bringing its total holdings to 46,329 shares worth approximately $4.16 million.
• Merck's recent earnings report revealed $2.13 EPS, exceeding the consensus estimate of $2.03, though revenue was slightly below expectations at $15.81 billion.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.81 per share, representing an annualized yield of 3.8%, with the ex-dividend date set for September 15th.

Sandhill Capital Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 8.4% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 46,329 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 3,599 shares during the period. Sandhill Capital Partners LLC's holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $4,159,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.6% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 252,513,381 shares of the company's stock valued at $22,665,601,000 after purchasing an additional 1,417,274 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 1.1% during the first quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 81,669,651 shares of the company's stock valued at $7,330,668,000 after purchasing an additional 927,621 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 144.6% during the first quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 49,229,283 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,418,820,000 after purchasing an additional 29,104,112 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp raised its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 16.8% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 31,377,107 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,121,395,000 after purchasing an additional 4,511,742 shares during the period. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 21.4% during the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 21,547,758 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,143,571,000 after purchasing an additional 3,791,737 shares in the last quarter. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently commented on the company. Cantor Fitzgerald lowered Merck & Co., Inc. from an "overweight" rating to a "cautious" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 20th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, April 25th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on 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. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $99.00 to $98.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. Finally, Citigroup reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and set a $84.00 target price (down from $115.00) on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $107.44.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

Shares of MRK stock traded up $1.1030 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $87.1830. The stock had a trading volume of 11,973,348 shares, compared to its average volume of 12,141,414. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $81.64 and its 200 day simple moving average is $83.11. The company has a quick ratio of 1.17, a current ratio of 1.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. Merck & Co., Inc. has a one year low of $73.31 and a one year high of $120.30. The firm has a market cap of $217.76 billion, a PE ratio of 13.43, a P/E/G ratio of 0.91 and a beta of 0.38.

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, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.03 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $15.81 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate 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. On average, analysts forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 7th. Investors of record on Monday, September 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.81 per share. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 15th. Merck & Co., Inc.'s dividend payout ratio (DPR) 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.