Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) Given Average Recommendation of "Hold" by Analysts

Key Points

• Merck & Co., Inc. has received a consensus rating of "Hold" from analysts, with estimates for the stock's target price averaging around $107.44.
• In its latest earnings report, Merck posted $2.13 EPS, exceeding expectations of $2.03, but its revenue of $15.81 billion fell short of the anticipated $15.92 billion.
• The company recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.81 per share, representing a 3.9% yield and a payout ratio of approximately 49.92%.

Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) have been given an average recommendation of "Hold" by the twenty analysts that are covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, twelve have issued a hold recommendation, six have assigned a buy recommendation and one has given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year target price among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $107.4375.

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on MRK shares. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on 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. Cantor Fitzgerald cut Merck & Co., Inc. from an "overweight" rating to a "cautious" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 20th. Citigroup restated a "neutral" rating and set a $84.00 target price (down from $115.00) on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. Finally, Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on 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.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Semus Wealth Partners LLC lifted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 8.2% in the 1st quarter. Semus Wealth Partners LLC now owns 5,039 shares of the company's stock valued at $452,000 after buying an additional 382 shares in the last quarter. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC lifted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 20.4% in the 1st quarter. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC now owns 19,376 shares of the company's stock worth $1,739,000 after purchasing an additional 3,282 shares in the last quarter. Quilter Plc lifted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 5.6% in the 1st quarter. Quilter Plc now owns 1,180,797 shares of the company's stock worth $105,988,000 after purchasing an additional 62,933 shares in the last quarter. Simplicity Wealth LLC lifted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 991.7% in the 1st quarter. Simplicity Wealth LLC now owns 33,394 shares of the company's stock worth $2,997,000 after purchasing an additional 30,335 shares in the last quarter. Finally, China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 13.8% in the 1st quarter. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 56,566 shares of the company's stock worth $5,118,000 after purchasing an additional 6,850 shares in the last quarter. 76.07% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

NYSE:MRK traded down $0.55 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $83.63. The company's stock had a trading volume of 6,806,717 shares, compared to its average volume of 15,196,072. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 1 year low of $73.31 and a 1 year high of $120.30. 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 stock has a market cap of $208.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.89, a PEG ratio of 0.89 and a beta of 0.37. The business's fifty day moving average is $82.41 and its two-hundred day moving average is $83.01.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The company reported $2.13 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.03 by $0.10. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 41.05% and a net margin of 25.79%.The firm had revenue of $15.81 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $15.92 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2025 guidance at 8.870-8.970 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 7th. Investors of record on Monday, September 15th will be paid a $0.81 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend 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 currently 49.92%.

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.