Capital Investment Advisors LLC Increases Holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Capital Investment Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 3.8% in the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 349,905 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 12,958 shares during the quarter. Capital Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $27,699,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Barnes Dennig Private Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the first quarter worth about $27,000. Legend Financial Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $25,000. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC increased its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 141.7% during the first quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 377 shares of the company’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 221 shares during the period. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the first quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Finally, Fiduciary Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the first quarter valued at approximately $48,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently commented on MRK. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $97.00 to $90.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 30th. Berenberg Bank cut shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and reduced their target price for the company from $100.00 to $90.00 in a report on Wednesday, September 17th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered their price target 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. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Merck & Co., Inc. has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $106.41.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:MRK opened at $78.46 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 1.17 and a current ratio of 1.42. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $82.51 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $81.69. The stock has a market cap of $195.98 billion, a PE ratio of 12.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.81 and a beta of 0.37. Merck & Co., Inc. has a one year low of $73.31 and a one year high of $114.79.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The company reported $2.13 earnings per share (EPS) 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 for 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. On average, analysts forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current fiscal 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 issued 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 4.1%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 49.92%.

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.