Robertson Stephens Wealth Management LLC Cuts Stock Position in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Key Points

• Robertson Stephens Wealth Management LLC reduced its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 27.1% during the second quarter, down to 25,837 shares, worth approximately $2,066,000.
• Merck reported $2.13 earnings per share for the latest quarter, exceeding estimates, with a revenue of $15.81 billion, slightly below forecasts.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.81, representing an annualized yield of 3.8% and a payout ratio of 49.92%.

Robertson Stephens Wealth Management LLC cut its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 27.1% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 25,837 shares of the company's stock after selling 9,609 shares during the quarter. Robertson Stephens Wealth Management LLC's holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $2,066,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of MRK. Peoples Financial Services CORP. boosted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.5% during the second quarter. Peoples Financial Services CORP. now owns 22,778 shares of the company's stock worth $1,803,000 after buying an additional 122 shares during the period. McLean Asset Management Corp boosted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 3.7% during the second quarter. McLean Asset Management Corp now owns 3,543 shares of the company's stock worth $292,000 after buying an additional 125 shares during the period. Cora Capital Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.4% during the second quarter. Cora Capital Advisors LLC now owns 5,343 shares of the company's stock worth $423,000 after buying an additional 125 shares during the period. Foundation Wealth Management LLC PA boosted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.4% during the first quarter. Foundation Wealth Management LLC PA now owns 5,361 shares of the company's stock worth $481,000 after buying an additional 127 shares during the period. Finally, Saiph Capital LLC boosted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 3.7% during the first quarter. Saiph Capital LLC now owns 3,565 shares of the company's stock worth $320,000 after buying an additional 128 shares during the period. 76.07% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

MRK stock opened at $86.02 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 1.42 and a quick ratio of 1.17. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $83.47 and a 200 day moving average price of $81.51. The company has a market capitalization of $214.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.25, a PEG ratio of 0.90 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.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data 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 firm had revenue of $15.81 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate 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. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

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 $0.81 dividend. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.8%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 15th. Merck & Co., Inc.'s payout ratio is presently 49.92%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have commented on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company dropped 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. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $99.00 to $98.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "hold (c-)" rating on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Berenberg Bank downgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $100.00 to $90.00 in a research report on Wednesday, September 17th. One equities research 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 issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Merck & Co., Inc. currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $104.31.

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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