Tema Etfs LLC Acquires 27,848 Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Key Points

• Tema Etfs LLC increased its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 245.5% in Q1, owning 39,190 shares valued at approximately $3.5 million.
• Merck recently reported an EPS of $2.13 for the last quarter, exceeding estimates, while setting its FY 2025 guidance at $8.870-8.970 EPS.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.81 to be paid on October 7, with a dividend yield of 3.8%.

Tema Etfs LLC grew its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 245.5% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 39,190 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 27,848 shares during the period. Merck & Co., Inc. makes up 1.1% of Tema Etfs LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 24th largest holding. Tema Etfs LLC's holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $3,518,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. Trexquant Investment LP grew its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 1,314.5% in the 1st quarter. Trexquant Investment LP now owns 415,961 shares of the company's stock worth $37,337,000 after buying an additional 386,555 shares in the last quarter. Gerber Kawasaki Wealth & Investment Management grew its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 7.1% in the 1st quarter. Gerber Kawasaki Wealth & Investment Management now owns 7,060 shares of the company's stock worth $634,000 after buying an additional 467 shares in the last quarter. Huber Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 123.2% in the 1st quarter. Huber Capital Management LLC now owns 45,293 shares of the company's stock worth $4,066,000 after buying an additional 25,000 shares in the last quarter. Landscape Capital Management L.L.C. purchased a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 1st quarter worth $1,565,000. Finally, OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp grew its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 11.7% in the 1st quarter. OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp now owns 257,081 shares of the company's stock worth $23,076,000 after buying an additional 26,900 shares in the last quarter. 76.07% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Merck & Co., Inc. Trading Up 1.1%

MRK traded up $0.92 on Monday, reaching $84.13. 10,870,371 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 10,934,819. Merck & Co., Inc. has a one year low of $73.31 and a one year high of $120.30. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $82.14 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $82.97. The company has a market cap of $210.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.89 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.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 29th. The company reported $2.13 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.03 by $0.10. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 25.79% and a return on equity of 41.05%. The company had revenue of $15.81 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.92 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2025 guidance at 8.870-8.970 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 7th. Investors 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 yield of 3.9%. Merck & Co., Inc.'s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 49.92%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have commented on MRK shares. Citigroup reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $84.00 price objective (down from $115.00) on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. Cantor Fitzgerald cut shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from an "overweight" rating to a "cautious" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 20th. 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. 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 for the company in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating, twelve have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target 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.