Cim Investment Management Inc. Acquires 8,262 Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Cim Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 99.7% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 16,553 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 8,262 shares during the quarter. Cim Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $1,310,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of MRK. Legend Financial Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 2nd quarter valued at $25,000. Kilter Group LLC bought a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the second quarter valued at $27,000. Bare Financial Services Inc increased its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 51.9% in 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 in 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 valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 221 shares during the period. Finally, Mountain Hill Investment Partners Corp. bought a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 2nd quarter worth about $43,000. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Up 1.3%

MRK stock opened at $100.33 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $92.10 and its 200-day moving average is $85.37. Merck & Co., Inc. has a twelve month low of $73.31 and a twelve month high of $105.84. The firm has a market capitalization of $249.02 billion, a PE ratio of 13.25, a P/E/G ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 0.29. The company has a quick ratio of 1.44, a current ratio of 1.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 30th. The company reported $2.58 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.36 by $0.22. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 44.54% and a net margin of 29.63%.The business had revenue of $17.28 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $17 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.57 EPS. Merck & Co., Inc.’s quarterly revenue was up 3.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2025 guidance at 8.930-8.980 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 8th. Investors of record on Monday, December 15th will be given a dividend of $0.85 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 15th. This is an increase from Merck & Co., Inc.’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.81. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.4%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s payout ratio is 42.80%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently commented on MRK shares. Citigroup started coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Monday, October 13th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $95.00 price target on the stock. Wall Street Zen upgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Saturday, November 8th. Scotiabank increased their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, December 4th. Berenberg Bank downgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and reduced their price target for the company from $100.00 to $90.00 in a research report on Wednesday, September 17th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Monday, December 8th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $107.50.

Insider Buying and Selling at Merck & Co., Inc.

In related 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 transaction, 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 ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 0.13% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.