Natixis Sells 852,150 Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Natixis decreased its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 58.6% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 600,928 shares of the company’s stock after selling 852,150 shares during the period. Natixis’ holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $47,569,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. DLD Asset Management LP bought a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 2nd quarter worth $2,889,340,000. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the second quarter worth about $2,858,570,000. Nuveen LLC bought a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the first quarter worth about $991,553,000. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 23.5% in the second quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 27,032,601 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,139,901,000 after acquiring an additional 5,135,748 shares during the period. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership lifted its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 35.5% in the second quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 19,456,096 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,540,145,000 after acquiring an additional 5,094,088 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Down 1.1%

Merck & Co., Inc. stock opened at $99.81 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $247.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.91 and a beta of 0.29. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $90.86 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $84.68. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 1-year low of $73.31 and a 1-year high of $105.84. The company has a current ratio of 1.66, a quick ratio of 1.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 30th. The company reported $2.58 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.36 by $0.22. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 44.54% and a net margin of 29.63%.The firm had revenue of $17.28 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $17 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.57 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 3.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2025 guidance at 8.930-8.980 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 8th. Investors of record on Monday, December 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.85 per share. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.4%. This is an increase from Merck & Co., Inc.’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.81. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 15th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio is 42.80%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have weighed in on MRK shares. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, November 8th. Citigroup started coverage on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Monday, October 13th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $95.00 target price for the company. Berenberg Bank cut shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and cut their price target for the company from $100.00 to $90.00 in a research report on Wednesday, September 17th. Scotiabank increased their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a report on Thursday. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Tuesday, December 2nd. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $107.38.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Merck & Co., Inc. news, EVP David Michael Williams sold 8,614 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $83.59, for a total value of $720,044.26. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 24,578 shares in the company, valued at $2,054,475.02. This represents a 25.95% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

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.