Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK Shares Bought by Somerset Trust Co

Somerset Trust Co boosted its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 1.3% during the second quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 10,580 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 133 shares during the quarter. Somerset Trust Co’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $838,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Brighton Jones LLC raised its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 29.5% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 38,278 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,808,000 after purchasing an additional 8,710 shares during the period. American Assets Inc. purchased a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter valued at $398,000. Sentinus LLC raised its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 7.5% in the fourth quarter. Sentinus LLC now owns 3,529 shares of the company’s stock valued at $351,000 after purchasing an additional 247 shares during the period. Scissortail Wealth Management LLC raised its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 9,916.3% in the fourth quarter. Scissortail Wealth Management LLC now owns 39,264 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,905,000 after purchasing an additional 38,872 shares during the period. Finally, Suvretta Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter valued at $5,272,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

MRK stock opened at $82.87 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.42, a quick ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The company has a market capitalization of $206.99 billion, a PE ratio of 12.77, a P/E/G ratio of 0.87 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 business’s fifty day moving average price is $82.93 and its 200 day moving average price is $82.81.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The company reported $2.13 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 company had revenue of $15.81 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.92 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2025 guidance at 8.870-8.970 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 7th. Shareholders 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 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.9%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio is 49.92%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have commented on MRK shares. Cantor Fitzgerald downgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from an “overweight” rating to a “cautious” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 20th. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $99.00 to $98.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 10th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $97.00 to $90.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating, twelve have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $107.44.

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.