Orca Investment Management LLC Buys Shares of 18,466 Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Key Points

• Orca Investment Management LLC has acquired 18,466 shares of Merck & Co., Inc., valued at approximately $1.46 million, making it the firm's 26th largest position.
• Merck's latest earnings report showed an EPS of $2.13, surpassing expectations, along with a revenue of $15.81 billion which was slightly below forecasts.
• Analysts have varied ratings on Merck, with the consensus being a "Hold" rating and a target price averaging $104.31.

Orca Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 18,466 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,462,000. Merck & Co., Inc. comprises 1.3% of Orca Investment Management LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 26th biggest position.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Legend Financial Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Barnes Dennig Private Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $27,000. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC grew its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 141.7% in the 1st quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 377 shares of the company's stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 221 shares during the last quarter. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Finally, Chung Wu Investment Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $45,000. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the company. Berenberg Bank downgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and decreased their price target for the company from $100.00 to $90.00 in a research note on Wednesday, September 17th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target 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. Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c-)" rating on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $99.00 to $98.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $104.31.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

Shares of MRK stock opened at $86.02 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $83.47 and a 200 day moving average price of $81.47. The stock has a market cap of $214.87 billion, a PE ratio of 13.25, a P/E/G ratio of 0.88 and a beta of 0.37. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 1 year low of $73.31 and a 1 year high of $111.58. 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 issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 29th. The company reported $2.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.03 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $15.81 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations 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. Sell-side analysts forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

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

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