Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) Stock Price Up 4.5% - Still a Buy?

Key Points

• Merck & Co., Inc.'s stock price increased by 4.5%, closing at $82.08 after trading as high as $81.67, despite a 54% drop in trading volume compared to its average.
• Analyst price targets have been reduced, with Wells Fargo setting a new target of $90.00, and the overall consensus rating is a "Hold" with a target price of $106.41.
• The company recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.81, giving an annualized yield of 3.9%, with a payout ratio of about 49.92%.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report)'s stock price rose 4.5% on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $81.67 and last traded at $82.08. Approximately 6,805,308 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 54% from the average daily volume of 14,946,030 shares. The stock had previously closed at $78.58.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MRK has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $97.00 to $90.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $99.00 to $98.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. Finally, Berenberg Bank lowered Merck & Co., Inc. from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and reduced their price objective for the company from $100.00 to $90.00 in a research note on Wednesday, September 17th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating, thirteen have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Merck & Co., Inc. has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $106.41.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

The stock has a 50 day moving average of $82.51 and a 200 day moving average of $81.69. 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 company has a market capitalization of $209.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.81 and a beta of 0.37.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 29th. The company reported $2.13 EPS 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 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 predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

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 paid a $0.81 dividend. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 15th. Merck & Co., Inc.'s payout ratio is currently 49.92%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Merck & Co., Inc.

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Brighton Jones LLC increased its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 29.5% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 38,278 shares of the company's stock worth $3,808,000 after purchasing an additional 8,710 shares in the last quarter. Mirador Capital Partners LP increased its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 4.5% in the first quarter. Mirador Capital Partners LP now owns 6,431 shares of the company's stock worth $577,000 after purchasing an additional 277 shares in the last quarter. Baker Tilly Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 24.6% in the first quarter. Baker Tilly Wealth Management LLC now owns 14,168 shares of the company's stock worth $1,272,000 after purchasing an additional 2,799 shares in the last quarter. NBC Securities Inc. increased its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 97,672.3% in the first quarter. NBC Securities Inc. now owns 45,953 shares of the company's stock worth $4,124,000 after purchasing an additional 45,906 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sweeney & Michel LLC bought a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the first quarter worth approximately $564,000. 76.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Merck & Co., Inc.

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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