Plancorp LLC Lowers Stock Position in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Key Points

• Plancorp LLC reduced its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 48.7%, holding 14,244 shares valued at $1,128,000 after selling 13,510 shares in the second quarter.
• Merck reported $2.13 earnings per share for the last quarter, exceeding the consensus estimate of $2.03, while revenue was $15.81 billion, slightly below expectations.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.81 per share, resulting in an annualized dividend of $3.24 and a dividend yield of 4.1%.

Plancorp LLC lowered its position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 48.7% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 14,244 shares of the company's stock after selling 13,510 shares during the period. Plancorp LLC's holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $1,128,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Brighton Jones LLC increased its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 29.5% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 38,278 shares of the company's stock worth $3,808,000 after buying an additional 8,710 shares during the last quarter. American Assets Inc. purchased a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter worth about $398,000. Total Wealth Planning & Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter worth about $203,000. Wood Tarver Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter worth about $205,000. Finally, Old North State Trust LLC increased its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 7.7% during the fourth quarter. Old North State Trust LLC now owns 9,589 shares of the company's stock worth $954,000 after buying an additional 689 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.07% of the company's stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

MRK opened at $79.62 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $198.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.27, a PEG ratio of 0.82 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 price of $82.63 and a 200-day moving average price of $82.21. Merck & Co., Inc. has a twelve month low of $73.31 and a twelve month high of $116.02.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The company reported $2.13 earnings per share 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 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. Equities analysts expect that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 7th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 15th will be given a $0.81 dividend. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.1%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 15th. Merck & Co., Inc.'s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 49.92%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MRK has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Berenberg Bank downgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and decreased their price objective for the stock from $100.00 to $90.00 in a report on Wednesday, September 17th. Morgan Stanley decreased 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 report on Thursday, July 10th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased 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 report on Wednesday, July 30th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating, thirteen have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $106.41.

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.

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