Sage Capital Advisors llc Purchases Shares of 51,056 Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Key Points

• Sage Capital Advisors LLC purchased 51,056 shares of Merck & Co., Inc. valued at approximately $4,042,000 in the second quarter.
• Merck's recent earnings report showed a profit of $2.13 per share, exceeding analysts' estimates, with a revenue of $15.81 billion.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.81 per share, reflecting a yield of 3.9% and a dividend payout ratio of 49.92%.

Sage Capital Advisors llc purchased a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund purchased 51,056 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,042,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Fiduciary Financial Group LLC increased its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 7.7% during the 2nd quarter. Fiduciary Financial Group LLC now owns 7,267 shares of the company's stock valued at $595,000 after purchasing an additional 521 shares in the last quarter. City Center Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 2nd quarter valued at $238,000. HBW Advisory Services LLC increased its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 24.9% during the 2nd quarter. HBW Advisory Services LLC now owns 32,973 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,610,000 after purchasing an additional 6,583 shares in the last quarter. Howard Financial Services LTD. increased its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 8.5% during the 2nd quarter. Howard Financial Services LTD. now owns 7,112 shares of the company's stock valued at $563,000 after purchasing an additional 560 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Doliver Advisors LP increased its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 8.3% during the 2nd quarter. Doliver Advisors LP now owns 18,043 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,428,000 after purchasing an additional 1,380 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 76.07% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have commented on MRK. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target 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 reduced 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. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald lowered shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from an "overweight" rating to a "cautious" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 20th. 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 company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Merck & Co., Inc. presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $107.44.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:MRK opened at $82.87 on Friday. The company's 50-day moving average is $82.93 and its 200 day moving average is $82.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 1.17 and a current ratio of 1.42. The company has a market capitalization of $206.99 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.87 and a beta of 0.37. Merck & Co., Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $73.31 and a fifty-two week high of $119.38.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The company reported $2.13 earnings per share 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 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. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 7th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.81 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 15th. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.9%. Merck & Co., Inc.'s dividend payout ratio is 49.92%.

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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