EdgeRock Capital LLC Sells 417 Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

EdgeRock Capital LLC cut its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 14.0% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,567 shares of the company’s stock after selling 417 shares during the period. EdgeRock Capital LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $206,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Patron Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 4.2% during the second quarter. Patron Partners LLC now owns 10,692 shares of the company’s stock worth $846,000 after buying an additional 429 shares during the last quarter. LS Investment Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 9.2% during the second quarter. LS Investment Advisors LLC now owns 35,451 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,806,000 after buying an additional 2,995 shares during the last quarter. Legend Financial Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the second quarter valued at approximately $25,000. A. D. Beadell Investment Counsel Inc. grew its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 1.0% during the second quarter. A. D. Beadell Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 31,132 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,464,000 after purchasing an additional 295 shares during the period. Finally, American National Bank & Trust raised its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 17.1% in the second quarter. American National Bank & Trust now owns 27,187 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,152,000 after purchasing an additional 3,965 shares during the period. 76.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $99.00 to $98.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 10th. Berenberg Bank lowered shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $100.00 to $90.00 in a research report on Wednesday, September 17th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $97.00 to $90.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 30th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $106.41.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

NYSE MRK opened at $77.70 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.42, a quick ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The company has a market cap of $194.07 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.97, a PEG ratio of 0.82 and a beta of 0.37. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $82.56 and a 200 day simple moving average of $82.09. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12-month low of $73.31 and a 12-month high of $114.79.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last posted 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. The firm had revenue of $15.81 billion for 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. Sell-side analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 7th. Investors of record on Monday, September 15th will be paid a $0.81 dividend. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.2%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 15th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s payout ratio is currently 49.92%.

Merck & Co., Inc. Company 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.