Infrastructure Capital Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK – Free Report) by 46.4% during the first quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 21,977 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 6,968 shares during the period. Infrastructure Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $2,644,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.
Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Brighton Jones LLC increased its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 29.5% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 38,278 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,808,000 after purchasing an additional 8,710 shares during the period. Sivia Capital Partners LLC boosted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 52.2% during the second quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 11,494 shares of the company’s stock valued at $910,000 after buying an additional 3,941 shares during the period. Diversify Advisory Services LLC boosted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 94.1% during the second quarter. Diversify Advisory Services LLC now owns 32,256 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,590,000 after buying an additional 15,636 shares during the period. Diversify Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 22.2% during the second quarter. Diversify Wealth Management LLC now owns 38,031 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,054,000 after buying an additional 6,897 shares in the last quarter. Finally, MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. grew its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 111.7% during the second quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 681,128 shares of the company’s stock worth $53,918,000 after buying an additional 359,356 shares in the last quarter. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.
Analyst Ratings Changes
A number of equities analysts have weighed in on MRK shares. Citigroup initiated coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $125.00 target price on the stock. Bank of America lifted their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $130.00 to $141.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 30th. Scotiabank boosted their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $136.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 30th. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $142.00 price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Wednesday, July 8th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, July 20th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $133.94.
Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Down 0.2%
MRK opened at $130.86 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $323.20 billion, a PE ratio of 36.86, a P/E/G ratio of 5.20 and a beta of 0.19. 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 $76.66 and a 52 week high of $132.53. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $122.03 and its 200 day simple moving average is $117.94.
Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK – Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported ($1.28) earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($1.47) by $0.19. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 27.55% and a net margin of 13.59%.The business had revenue of $16.29 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.85 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.22 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.9% on a year-over-year basis. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.040-5.160 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 2.74 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement
The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 8th. Investors of record on Monday, June 15th were issued a dividend of $0.85 per share. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 15th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 95.77%.
Merck & Co., Inc. Profile
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.
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