Beto Financial Group LLC Makes New Investment in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Beto Financial Group LLC bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor bought 5,537 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $628,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of MRK. Kingdom Financial Group LLC. purchased a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. United Financial Planning Group LLC purchased a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $31,000. High Note Wealth LLC lifted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 58.9% in the 4th quarter. High Note Wealth LLC now owns 294 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 109 shares in the last quarter. Tucker Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,000. Finally, Wealth Watch Advisors INC purchased a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $34,000. 76.07% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MRK has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. UBS Group raised their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $130.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, April 13th. Guggenheim raised their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $122.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 6th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $150.00 price target for the company in a report on Friday, February 13th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, May 16th. Finally, Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Friday, May 15th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $128.18.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

NYSE:MRK opened at $115.28 on Tuesday. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $116.42 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $111.81. The company has a market cap of $284.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.67 and a beta of 0.18. The company has a quick ratio of 1.06, a current ratio of 1.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 52 week low of $75.40 and a 52 week high of $125.14.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported ($1.28) EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($1.47) by $0.19. The business had revenue of $16.29 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.85 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 13.59% and a return on equity of 27.55%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 4.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.22 earnings per share. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.040-5.160 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 5.16 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 8th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 15th will be paid a $0.85 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 15th. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.9%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s payout ratio is 95.77%.

About Merck & Co., Inc.

Merck & Co, Inc is a global biopharmaceutical company engaged in the discovery, development, manufacture and marketing of prescription medicines, vaccines, biologic therapies and animal health products. Its portfolio spans multiple therapeutic areas with a particular emphasis on oncology, vaccines and infectious disease, as well as therapies for metabolic and chronic conditions. Among its well-known products are the cancer immunotherapy Keytruda (pembrolizumab) and the human papillomavirus vaccine Gardasil; the company also markets a range of medicines and vaccines for veterinary use through Merck Animal Health.

Founded in the late 19th century as the U.S.