St. Louis Financial Planners Asset Management LLC Makes New $2.72 Million Investment in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Key Points

• St. Louis Financial Planners Asset Management LLC invested approximately $2.72 million in Merck & Co., Inc., acquiring 34,372 shares, making it the 16th largest position in their portfolio.
• Merck reported earnings of $2.13 per share for the last quarter, exceeding analysts' estimates of $2.03, while revenues slightly missed expectations at $15.81 billion.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.81 per share, translating to an annual yield of 4.0%, with a payout ratio of 49.92%.

St. Louis Financial Planners Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 34,372 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,721,000. Merck & Co., Inc. accounts for approximately 2.1% of St. Louis Financial Planners Asset Management LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 16th biggest position.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 144.6% during the first quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 49,229,283 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,418,820,000 after purchasing an additional 29,104,112 shares in the last quarter. Nuveen LLC bought a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the first quarter valued at about $991,553,000. Pacer Advisors Inc. raised its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 2,240.9% during the first quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 5,286,801 shares of the company's stock valued at $474,543,000 after purchasing an additional 5,060,959 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 9,991.9% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 4,332,446 shares of the company's stock valued at $388,880,000 after purchasing an additional 4,289,516 shares in the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 21.4% during the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 21,547,758 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,143,571,000 after purchasing an additional 3,791,737 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.07% of the company's stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Down 2.1%

Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock opened at $81.07 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $202.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.49, a PEG ratio of 0.85 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 stock has a 50 day moving average price of $82.93 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $82.68. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12-month low of $73.31 and a 12-month high of $119.38.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The company reported $2.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates 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. Equities analysts expect that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current 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. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 15th. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.0%. Merck & Co., Inc.'s payout ratio is 49.92%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Cantor Fitzgerald cut shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from an "overweight" rating to a "cautious" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 20th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target 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. Finally, Morgan Stanley dropped their price target 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 equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating, twelve have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $107.44.

Merck & Co., Inc. Company 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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