Mitchell Sinkler & Starr PA Lowers Position in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Key Points

• Mitchell Sinkler & Starr PA reduced its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 55.4% in Q2, resulting in ownership of 44,808 shares valued at approximately $3.54 million, making it the 11th largest position in their portfolio.
• Merck's recent quarterly earnings showed $2.13 EPS, beating estimates, but revenue was slightly below expectations at $15.81 billion.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.81, translating to an annualized dividend yield of 3.8%, with a payout ratio of 49.92%.

Mitchell Sinkler & Starr PA cut its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 55.4% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 44,808 shares of the company's stock after selling 55,625 shares during the period. Merck & Co., Inc. accounts for approximately 1.7% of Mitchell Sinkler & Starr PA's portfolio, making the stock its 11th largest position. Mitchell Sinkler & Starr PA's holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $3,547,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of MRK. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 144.6% in the first quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 49,229,283 shares of the company's stock worth $4,418,820,000 after buying an additional 29,104,112 shares during the period. Nuveen LLC bought a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the first quarter valued at approximately $991,553,000. Pacer Advisors Inc. increased its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 2,240.9% during the first quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 5,286,801 shares of the company's stock valued at $474,543,000 after purchasing an additional 5,060,959 shares in the last quarter. Amundi increased its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 37.1% during the first quarter. Amundi now owns 13,077,716 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,130,397,000 after purchasing an additional 3,542,036 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Kingstone Capital Partners Texas LLC bought a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the second quarter valued at approximately $258,267,000. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

Shares of MRK opened at $86.02 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $214.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.88 and a beta of 0.37. The company has a quick ratio of 1.17, a current ratio of 1.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $83.47 and a 200 day moving average of $81.47. Merck & Co., Inc. has a twelve month low of $73.31 and a twelve month high of $111.58.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The company reported $2.13 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 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, equities research analysts anticipate that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 7th. Investors of record on Monday, September 15th were issued a $0.81 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 15th. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.8%. Merck & Co., Inc.'s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 49.92%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "hold (c-)" rating on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Wednesday. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price 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. Berenberg Bank downgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and decreased their target price for the company from $100.00 to $90.00 in a research note on Wednesday, September 17th. Finally, Morgan Stanley decreased their target price 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. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating, fourteen have given 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 an average target price of $104.31.

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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