Parsons Capital Management Inc. RI Sells 67,825 Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Parsons Capital Management Inc. RI decreased its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 39.6% in the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 103,352 shares of the company’s stock after selling 67,825 shares during the quarter. Parsons Capital Management Inc. RI’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $8,181,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Little House Capital LLC grew its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 1.2% in the 2nd quarter. Little House Capital LLC now owns 25,236 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,998,000 after acquiring an additional 308 shares in the last quarter. Semus Wealth Partners LLC grew its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 8.2% during the first quarter. Semus Wealth Partners LLC now owns 5,039 shares of the company’s stock worth $452,000 after purchasing an additional 382 shares during the period. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC grew its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 20.4% during the first quarter. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC now owns 19,376 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,739,000 after purchasing an additional 3,282 shares during the period. Quilter Plc grew its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 5.6% during the first quarter. Quilter Plc now owns 1,180,797 shares of the company’s stock worth $105,988,000 after purchasing an additional 62,933 shares during the period. Finally, Simplicity Wealth LLC grew its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 991.7% during the first quarter. Simplicity Wealth LLC now owns 33,394 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,997,000 after purchasing an additional 30,335 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Trading Up 7.4%

Shares of NYSE:MRK opened at $90.13 on Thursday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12-month low of $73.31 and a 12-month high of $114.60. The stock has a market cap of $225.11 billion, a PE ratio of 13.89, a P/E/G ratio of 0.86 and a beta of 0.37. The business has a 50 day moving average of $82.68 and a 200-day moving average of $81.77. The company has a quick ratio of 1.17, a current ratio of 1.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 return on equity of 41.05% and a net margin of 25.79%.The company had revenue of $15.81 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $15.92 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2025 guidance at 8.870-8.970 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 7th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.81 per share. 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 payout ratio is currently 49.92%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently commented on MRK. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target 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. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $99.00 to $98.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 10th. Finally, Berenberg Bank cut Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and reduced their price target for the stock from $100.00 to $90.00 in a report on Wednesday, September 17th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Merck & Co., Inc. 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.