OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp Has $23.08 Million Stake in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Key Points

• OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp increased its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 11.7%, holding 257,081 shares worth approximately $23.08 million as per their latest SEC filing.
• Merck's recent quarterly earnings surpassed expectations, reporting $2.13 EPS against an estimated $2.03, and a revenue of $15.81 billion.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.81, resulting in an annualized yield of 3.8%, with the ex-dividend date set for September 15th.

OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 11.7% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 257,081 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 26,900 shares during the quarter. OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp's holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $23,076,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Brighton Jones LLC increased 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 last quarter. American Assets Inc. bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $398,000. Boothbay Fund Management LLC bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $786,000. Evergreen Wealth Solutions LLC increased its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 4.0% in the fourth quarter. Evergreen Wealth Solutions LLC now owns 5,470 shares of the company's stock valued at $544,000 after acquiring an additional 212 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Voleon Capital Management LP bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $5,252,000. 76.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have weighed in on MRK. Citigroup restated a "neutral" rating and issued a $84.00 target price (down previously from $115.00) on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $97.00 to $90.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 30th. Cantor Fitzgerald lowered shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from an "overweight" rating to a "cautious" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 20th. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their target price on shares of 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. 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 issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $107.44.

Merck & Co., Inc. Trading Up 1.1%

Shares of NYSE:MRK traded up $0.92 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $84.13. 10,870,371 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 10,934,819. The firm has a market capitalization of $210.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.96, a PEG ratio of 0.89 and a beta of 0.37. The business's fifty day moving average price is $82.14 and its 200-day moving average price is $82.97. 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. has a twelve month low of $73.31 and a twelve month high of $120.30.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results 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 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 predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 7th. Stockholders 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 dividend yield of 3.9%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 15th. Merck & Co., Inc.'s payout ratio is 49.92%.

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.