Value Partners Investments Inc. Boosts Stock Holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Value Partners Investments Inc. grew its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 5.9% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 15,381 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 862 shares during the quarter. Value Partners Investments Inc.’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $1,216,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of MRK. Barnes Dennig Private Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the first quarter worth $27,000. Spurstone Advisory Services LLC bought a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter worth $37,000. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC raised its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 141.7% in the 1st quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 377 shares of the company’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 221 shares in the last quarter. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 1st quarter worth $36,000. Finally, Mpwm Advisory Solutions LLC bought a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter valued at about $45,000. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Down 2.7%

NYSE:MRK opened at $82.87 on Friday. The company has a market cap 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 twelve month low of $73.31 and a twelve 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. The company’s 50 day moving average is $82.93 and its two-hundred day moving average is $82.81.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The company reported $2.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 business had revenue of $15.81 billion during 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 year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced 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 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 49.92%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MRK has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $97.00 to $90.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. Cantor Fitzgerald downgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from an “overweight” rating to a “cautious” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 20th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective 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 issued a Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target 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.