Asset Advisors Investment Management LLC Sells 5,853 Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Asset Advisors Investment Management LLC trimmed its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 12.1% in the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 42,359 shares of the company’s stock after selling 5,853 shares during the quarter. Asset Advisors Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $3,353,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Barnes Dennig Private Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 1st quarter worth about $27,000. Legend Financial Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $25,000. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC raised its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 141.7% during the 1st 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 acquired a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 1st quarter worth approximately $36,000. Finally, Fiduciary Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 1st quarter worth approximately $48,000. 76.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

NYSE:MRK opened at $89.45 on Friday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $82.78 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $81.73. The company has a market capitalization of $223.41 billion, a PE ratio of 13.78, a P/E/G ratio of 0.93 and a beta of 0.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 1.17 and a current ratio of 1.42. Merck & Co., Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $73.31 and a fifty-two week high of $112.08.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 29th. The company reported $2.13 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.03 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $15.81 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.92 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 25.79% and a return on equity of 41.05%. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2025 guidance at 8.870-8.970 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share 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 issued a $0.81 dividend. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.6%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 15th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 49.92%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on MRK shares. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on 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. Berenberg Bank cut Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and dropped their price target for the company from $100.00 to $90.00 in a research note on Wednesday, September 17th. Finally, Morgan Stanley dropped their price target 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. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating, thirteen have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Merck & Co., Inc. presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $106.41.

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.