Estabrook Capital Management Has $7.94 Million Position in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Estabrook Capital Management lifted its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 3.7% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 100,355 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,584 shares during the quarter. Merck & Co., Inc. accounts for about 1.2% of Estabrook Capital Management’s portfolio, making the stock its 23rd largest position. Estabrook Capital Management’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $7,944,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Legend Financial Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the second quarter worth $25,000. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 141.7% during the 1st quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 377 shares of the company’s stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 221 shares in the last quarter. Mountain Hill Investment Partners Corp. bought a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 2nd quarter worth $43,000. Advantage Trust Co grew its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 57.1% during the 2nd quarter. Advantage Trust Co now owns 550 shares of the company’s stock worth $44,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Chung Wu Investment Group LLC acquired a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 2nd quarter worth about $45,000. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Merck & Co., Inc. news, EVP David Michael Williams sold 8,614 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $83.59, for a total transaction of $720,044.26. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 24,578 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,054,475.02. This trade represents a 25.95% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently commented on MRK. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $98.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, November 3rd. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Wednesday. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $90.00 to $125.00 in a report on Monday, November 24th. Berenberg Bank downgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and dropped their price target for the company from $100.00 to $90.00 in a research note on Wednesday, September 17th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $110.00 to $111.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 18th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Merck & Co., Inc. presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $107.06.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

NYSE:MRK opened at $104.63 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $259.69 billion, a PE ratio of 16.12, a P/E/G ratio of 0.95 and a beta of 0.34. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $88.66 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $83.74. 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 fifty-two week low of $73.31 and a fifty-two week high of $105.84.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 30th. The company reported $2.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.36 by $0.22. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 25.79% and a return on equity of 41.05%. The firm had revenue of $17.28 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $17 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.57 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.7% on a year-over-year basis. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2025 guidance at 8.930-8.980 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 8th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 15th will be given a dividend of $0.85 per share. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.2%. This is an increase from Merck & Co., Inc.’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.81. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 15th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s payout ratio is currently 44.91%.

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.