CPC Advisors LLC Has $483,000 Stock Holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

CPC Advisors LLC decreased its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 94.1% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 4,016 shares of the company’s stock after selling 64,364 shares during the period. CPC Advisors LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $483,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter valued at about $3,997,933,000. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 14.8% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 86,435,458 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,098,196,000 after acquiring an additional 11,156,354 shares in the last quarter. DLD Asset Management LP raised its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 30.1% during the third quarter. DLD Asset Management LP now owns 47,500,000 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,986,675,000 after acquiring an additional 11,000,000 shares in the last quarter. Cardano Risk Management B.V. bought a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter worth about $1,012,530,000. Finally, Jennison Associates LLC bought a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter worth about $585,192,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

Merck & Co., Inc. stock opened at $115.47 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $115.79 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $113.79. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12 month low of $76.66 and a 12 month high of $125.14. The company has a market capitalization of $285.19 billion, a PE ratio of 32.53, a P/E/G ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 0.21. The company has a current ratio of 1.30, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported ($1.28) earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($1.47) by $0.19. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 27.55% and a net margin of 13.59%.The company had revenue of $16.29 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $15.85 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.22 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 4.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.040-5.160 EPS. Analysts expect that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 5.17 EPS for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 8th. Investors of record on Monday, June 15th will be given a dividend of $0.85 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 15th. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.9%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 95.77%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MRK has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, April 6th. Zacks Research raised shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 17th. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research report on Friday, May 15th. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $142.00 target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Monday, March 30th. Finally, Citigroup started coverage on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $125.00 price target for the company. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Merck & Co., Inc. has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $128.18.

Merck & Co., Inc. Company Profile

Merck & Co, Inc is a global biopharmaceutical company engaged in the discovery, development, manufacture and marketing of prescription medicines, vaccines, biologic therapies and animal health products. Its portfolio spans multiple therapeutic areas with a particular emphasis on oncology, vaccines and infectious disease, as well as therapies for metabolic and chronic conditions. Among its well-known products are the cancer immunotherapy Keytruda (pembrolizumab) and the human papillomavirus vaccine Gardasil; the company also markets a range of medicines and vaccines for veterinary use through Merck Animal Health.

Founded in the late 19th century as the U.S.