Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK Stock Holdings Increased by Capital Counsel LLC NY

Capital Counsel LLC NY raised its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 1.8% during the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 63,228 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,120 shares during the quarter. Merck & Co., Inc. comprises about 0.2% of Capital Counsel LLC NY’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 20th largest position. Capital Counsel LLC NY’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $5,005,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in MRK. Legend Financial Advisors Inc. bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the second quarter worth $25,000. Bare Financial Services Inc increased its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 51.9% during the second quarter. Bare Financial Services Inc now owns 366 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares during the last quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC raised its holdings in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 221 shares during the period. Mountain Hill Investment Partners Corp. bought a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 2nd quarter worth about $43,000. Finally, Advantage Trust Co lifted its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 57.1% in the 2nd quarter. Advantage Trust Co now owns 550 shares of the company’s stock worth $44,000 after buying an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Merck & Co., Inc. news, EVP David Michael Williams sold 8,614 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $83.59, for a total transaction of $720,044.26. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 24,578 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,054,475.02. The trade was a 25.95% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

MRK opened at $104.63 on Monday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12 month low of $73.31 and a 12 month high of $105.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 1.42 and a quick ratio of 1.17. The stock has a market cap of $259.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.12, a P/E/G ratio of 0.95 and a beta of 0.34. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $88.66 and its 200 day moving average price is $83.81.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 30th. The company reported $2.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.36 by $0.22. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 41.05% and a net margin of 25.79%.The company had revenue of $17.28 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $17 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.57 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 3.7% on a year-over-year basis. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2025 guidance at 8.930-8.980 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 8th. Investors of record on Monday, December 15th will be given a $0.85 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 15th. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.2%. This is a boost from Merck & Co., Inc.’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.81. Merck & Co., Inc.’s payout ratio is currently 44.91%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on MRK shares. Scotiabank assumed coverage on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Thursday, November 13th. They set a “sector outperform” rating and a $105.00 price objective on the stock. Citigroup began coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Monday, October 13th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $95.00 price target on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $110.00 to $111.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 18th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, November 8th. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $98.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, November 3rd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $107.06.

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.