1,455,238 Shares in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK Bought by VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al

VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al purchased a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 1,455,238 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $115,197,000. Merck & Co., Inc. accounts for 0.8% of VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al’s holdings, making the stock its 18th largest position.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Little House Capital LLC boosted its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 1.2% during the 2nd quarter. Little House Capital LLC now owns 25,236 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,998,000 after buying an additional 308 shares during the period. Semus Wealth Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 8.2% during the first quarter. Semus Wealth Partners LLC now owns 5,039 shares of the company’s stock worth $452,000 after purchasing an additional 382 shares during the period. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC grew its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 20.4% in the first quarter. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC now owns 19,376 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,739,000 after purchasing an additional 3,282 shares during the last quarter. Quilter Plc increased its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 5.6% during the 1st quarter. Quilter Plc now owns 1,180,797 shares of the company’s stock valued at $105,988,000 after purchasing an additional 62,933 shares during the period. Finally, MEAG MUNICH ERGO Kapitalanlagegesellschaft mbH raised its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 9.8% during the 2nd quarter. MEAG MUNICH ERGO Kapitalanlagegesellschaft mbH now owns 888,415 shares of the company’s stock valued at $70,327,000 after purchasing an additional 79,529 shares during the last quarter. 76.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MRK has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $99.00 to $98.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 10th. Citigroup started coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Monday, October 13th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $95.00 price target for the company. Berenberg Bank downgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and reduced their price objective for the company from $100.00 to $90.00 in a research report on Wednesday, September 17th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of 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. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating, thirteen have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $104.33.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

Shares of MRK stock opened at $84.78 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.17, a current ratio of 1.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The stock has a market cap of $211.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.06, a PEG ratio of 0.93 and a beta of 0.37. The business’s fifty day moving average is $83.91 and its 200 day moving average is $81.35. Merck & Co., Inc. has a twelve month low of $73.31 and a twelve month high of $109.92.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The company reported $2.13 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.03 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $15.81 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations 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. Research analysts expect that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 7th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 15th were issued a $0.81 dividend. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.8%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 15th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio is 49.92%.

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.