Marks Group Wealth Management Inc Decreases Holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Marks Group Wealth Management Inc lowered its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 18.3% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,713 shares of the company’s stock after selling 606 shares during the period. Marks Group Wealth Management Inc’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $215,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in MRK. Peoples Financial Services CORP. grew its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.5% during the 2nd quarter. Peoples Financial Services CORP. now owns 22,778 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,803,000 after purchasing an additional 122 shares during the last quarter. McLean Asset Management Corp increased its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 3.7% in the second quarter. McLean Asset Management Corp now owns 3,543 shares of the company’s stock worth $292,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares during the period. Cora Capital Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.4% during the second quarter. Cora Capital Advisors LLC now owns 5,343 shares of the company’s stock worth $423,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares during the last quarter. Foundation Wealth Management LLC PA boosted its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.4% during the first quarter. Foundation Wealth Management LLC PA now owns 5,361 shares of the company’s stock valued at $481,000 after purchasing an additional 127 shares during the period. Finally, Saiph Capital LLC grew its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 3.7% in the first quarter. Saiph Capital LLC now owns 3,565 shares of the company’s stock worth $320,000 after purchasing an additional 128 shares during the last quarter. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Down 0.4%

Merck & Co., Inc. stock opened at $88.83 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $221.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.69, a P/E/G ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 0.37. 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. has a twelve month low of $73.31 and a twelve month high of $111.58. The business has a fifty day moving average of $82.96 and a two-hundred day moving average of $81.48.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 29th. The company reported $2.13 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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 for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.92 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2025 guidance at 8.870-8.970 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

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 given a $0.81 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 15th. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.6%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s payout ratio is presently 49.92%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MRK has been the subject of several research reports. Berenberg Bank cut shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $100.00 to $90.00 in a research report on Wednesday, September 17th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $99.00 to $98.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered 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. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Saturday, September 27th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $104.31.

About Merck & Co., Inc.

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.