Sunpointe LLC Acquires 3,575 Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Key Points

• Sunpointe LLC increased its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 154.6%, acquiring an additional 3,575 shares during the second quarter, bringing its total to 5,888 shares valued at approximately $471,000.
• Merck reported an earnings per share (EPS) of $2.13 in its latest quarterly results, exceeding analysts' expectations of $2.03, and generated revenues of $15.81 billion for the quarter.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.81 per share, set to be paid on October 7th, representing an annualized yield of 4.0%.

Sunpointe LLC increased its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 154.6% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 5,888 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 3,575 shares during the quarter. Sunpointe LLC's holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $471,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of MRK. Barnes Dennig Private Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the first quarter valued at about $27,000. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC raised its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 141.7% in the first 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 bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the first quarter valued at about $36,000. Mpwm Advisory Solutions LLC bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter valued at about $45,000. Finally, Fiduciary Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the first quarter valued at about $48,000. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock opened at $81.07 on Wednesday. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $82.93 and its 200 day simple moving average is $82.66. The firm has a market capitalization of $202.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.83 and a beta of 0.37. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12 month low of $73.31 and a 12 month high of $119.38. The company has a current ratio of 1.42, a quick ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The company reported $2.13 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.03 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $15.81 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates 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, analysts anticipate that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 7th. Shareholders 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 yield of 4.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 15th. Merck & Co., Inc.'s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 49.92%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MRK has been the subject of several research reports. Morgan Stanley dropped 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. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $97.00 to $90.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 30th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald downgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from an "overweight" rating to a "cautious" rating in a research report 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 assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $107.44.

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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