GM Advisory Group LLC Lowers Position in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

GM Advisory Group LLC cut its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 66.6% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 19,710 shares of the company’s stock after selling 39,271 shares during the quarter. GM Advisory Group LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $1,769,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Capital Analysts LLC grew its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 4.8% during the 1st quarter. Capital Analysts LLC now owns 62,942 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,649,000 after purchasing an additional 2,889 shares during the period. Humankind Investments LLC grew its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 10.4% during the 1st quarter. Humankind Investments LLC now owns 31,904 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,864,000 after purchasing an additional 2,995 shares during the period. Groupama Asset Managment grew its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 9.2% during the 1st quarter. Groupama Asset Managment now owns 862,359 shares of the company’s stock worth $76,948,000 after purchasing an additional 72,571 shares during the period. Crabel Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 1st quarter valued at about $273,000. Finally, JT Stratford LLC grew its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 192.0% in the 1st quarter. JT Stratford LLC now owns 18,658 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,675,000 after acquiring an additional 12,268 shares in the last quarter. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Up 0.9%

Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock opened at $84.9810 on Wednesday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 52-week low of $73.31 and a 52-week high of $120.30. The company has a 50 day moving average of $81.35 and a 200 day moving average of $83.22. 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 $212.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.09, a P/E/G ratio of 0.89 and a beta of 0.38.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last issued 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 company had revenue of $15.81 billion during 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. As a group, research analysts forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared 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 3.8%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s payout ratio is currently 49.92%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have weighed in on MRK shares. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $99.00 to $98.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. Cantor Fitzgerald downgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from an “overweight” rating to a “cautious” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 20th. Citigroup reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $84.00 target price (down from $115.00) on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on 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. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating, twelve have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Merck & Co., Inc. has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $107.44.

Merck & Co., Inc. Company 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.