Howe & Rusling Inc. Raises Position in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Howe & Rusling Inc. boosted its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 4.0% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 19,822 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 760 shares during the quarter. Howe & Rusling Inc.’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $1,779,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in MRK. Barnes Dennig Private Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 1st quarter valued at about $27,000. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC lifted its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 141.7% in the 1st quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 377 shares of the company’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 221 shares in the last quarter. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 1st quarter worth approximately $36,000. Spurstone Advisory Services LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter worth approximately $37,000. Finally, Mpwm Advisory Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter valued at $45,000. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock opened at $85.11 on Friday. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $82.89 and its 200-day simple moving average is $82.91. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 52 week low of $73.31 and a 52 week high of $119.38. 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 firm has a market cap of $212.59 billion, a PE ratio of 13.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.86 and a beta of 0.37.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The company reported $2.13 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.03 by $0.10. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 41.05% and a net margin of 25.79%.The company had revenue of $15.81 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.92 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2025 guidance at 8.870-8.970 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 7th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 15th will be given a dividend of $0.81 per share. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 15th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 49.92%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MRK has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on 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. Cantor Fitzgerald downgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from an “overweight” rating to a “cautious” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 20th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $99.00 to $98.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating, twelve have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $107.44.

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.