Captrust Financial Advisors Grows Stake in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Captrust Financial Advisors raised its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 34.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,665,219 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 426,769 shares during the period. Captrust Financial Advisors’ holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $175,281,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Kingdom Financial Group LLC. bought a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. Abound Financial LLC bought a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. United Financial Planning Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the third quarter valued at $31,000. High Note Wealth LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 58.9% during the fourth quarter. High Note Wealth LLC now owns 294 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 109 shares in the last quarter. Finally, IFC & Insurance Marketing Inc. bought a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter valued at $31,000. 76.07% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Up 0.2%

MRK stock opened at $115.10 on Wednesday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $76.66 and a fifty-two week high of $125.14. The business’s 50-day moving average is $116.32 and its two-hundred day moving average is $113.46. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a current ratio of 1.30. The company has a market cap of $284.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.42, a P/E/G ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 0.21.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported ($1.28) earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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 the consensus estimate of $15.85 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.22 earnings per share. Merck & Co., Inc.’s revenue was up 4.9% on a year-over-year basis. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.040-5.160 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 5.17 earnings per share for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 8th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 15th will be issued a $0.85 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 15th. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.0%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio is currently 95.77%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on MRK. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, April 6th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $150.00 to $145.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 1st. Weiss Ratings downgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Friday, May 15th. Barclays began coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Friday, February 20th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $140.00 price target on the stock. Finally, UBS Group upped their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $130.00 to $145.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, April 13th. One equities research 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 MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus 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.