Banque Transatlantique SA Purchases 416,674 Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Banque Transatlantique SA raised its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 1,646.2% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 441,985 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 416,674 shares during the period. Merck & Co., Inc. accounts for approximately 0.7% of Banque Transatlantique SA’s holdings, making the stock its 27th biggest holding. Banque Transatlantique SA’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $36,663,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 44.3% during the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 7,757,818 shares of the company’s stock worth $691,066,000 after buying an additional 2,380,066 shares during the last quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. grew its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 12.1% during the 1st quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 287,780 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,831,000 after acquiring an additional 31,065 shares during the period. American Trust Investment Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 30.6% during the 1st quarter. American Trust Investment Advisors LLC now owns 11,473 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,030,000 after acquiring an additional 2,690 shares during the period. Ancora Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.5% during the 1st quarter. Ancora Advisors LLC now owns 28,804 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,585,000 after acquiring an additional 703 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Amundi lifted its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 37.1% in the 1st quarter. Amundi now owns 13,077,716 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,130,397,000 after purchasing an additional 3,542,036 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

Shares of MRK stock opened at $85.34 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 1.17 and a current ratio of 1.42. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 52 week low of $73.31 and a 52 week high of $120.30. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $82.32 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $83.00. The company has a market capitalization of $213.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.89 and a beta of 0.37.

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 the consensus estimate of $2.03 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $15.81 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.92 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 25.79% and a return on equity of 41.05%. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2025 guidance at 8.870-8.970 EPS. On average, analysts expect 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 declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 7th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 15th will be issued a $0.81 dividend. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.8%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 15th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s payout ratio is 49.92%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on MRK shares. Cantor Fitzgerald cut Merck & Co., Inc. from an “overweight” rating to a “cautious” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 20th. Citigroup restated a “neutral” rating and set a $84.00 target price (down from $115.00) on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $99.00 to $98.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $97.00 to $90.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $107.44.

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.