Horizon Investments LLC Has $3.18 Million Stock Holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Key Points

• Horizon Investments LLC increased its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 14.7%, owning 35,433 shares worth approximately $3.18 million following the investment.
• Overall, 76.07% of Merck's stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds, reflecting strong institutional interest in the company.
• Merck recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.81, which will be paid on October 7th, representing a 3.8% yield based on its annualized dividend.

Horizon Investments LLC increased its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 14.7% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 35,433 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 4,540 shares during the quarter. Horizon Investments LLC's holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $3,180,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Barnes Dennig Private Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the first quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Spurstone Advisory Services LLC acquired a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $37,000. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the first quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Marshall & Sterling Wealth Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter worth $44,000. Finally, Minot DeBlois Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter worth $45,000. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on MRK. Citigroup restated a "neutral" rating and issued a $84.00 price objective (down from $115.00) on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. Cantor Fitzgerald cut shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from an "overweight" rating to a "cautious" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 20th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on shares of 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. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of 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. One equities 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 assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $107.44.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

MRK stock traded up $0.7610 on Tuesday, reaching $84.9810. 14,292,318 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 15,463,322. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12 month low of $73.31 and a 12 month high of $120.30. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $81.28 and its 200 day moving average price is $83.21. The firm has a market capitalization of $212.26 billion, a PE ratio of 13.09, a PEG ratio of 0.89 and a beta of 0.38. 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. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The company reported $2.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.03 by $0.10. The business 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. On average, research analysts anticipate that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 7th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 15th will be issued a $0.81 dividend. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 15th. Merck & Co., Inc.'s payout ratio is 49.92%.

Merck & Co., Inc. Company 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.