Quantbot Technologies LP Trims Holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Quantbot Technologies LP cut its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 23.1% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 27,901 shares of the company’s stock after selling 8,392 shares during the quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $2,209,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of MRK. Legend Financial Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 2nd quarter valued at about $25,000. Bare Financial Services Inc lifted its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 51.9% during the second quarter. Bare Financial Services Inc now owns 366 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 125 shares in the last quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC grew its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 141.7% during the first quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 377 shares of the company’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 221 shares during the period. Mountain Hill Investment Partners Corp. purchased a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the second quarter worth approximately $43,000. Finally, Advantage Trust Co increased its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 57.1% in the second quarter. Advantage Trust Co now owns 550 shares of the company’s stock worth $44,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. 76.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Down 1.1%

MRK stock opened at $99.81 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $247.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.18, a PEG ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 0.29. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 1-year low of $73.31 and a 1-year high of $105.84. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $90.86 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $84.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 1.66 and a quick ratio of 1.44.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 30th. The company reported $2.58 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.36 by $0.22. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 29.63% and a return on equity of 44.54%. The business had revenue of $17.28 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $17 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.57 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue 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 predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Increases Dividend

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Tuesday. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $92.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their target price for the company from $90.00 to $125.00 in a research note on Monday, November 24th. Citigroup initiated coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Monday, October 13th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $95.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Berenberg Bank cut Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $100.00 to $90.00 in a report on Wednesday, September 17th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $107.38.

Insider Transactions at Merck & Co., Inc.

In related news, EVP David Michael Williams sold 8,614 shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $83.59, for a total transaction of $720,044.26. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 24,578 shares in the company, valued at $2,054,475.02. The trade was a 25.95% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.13% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.