Merck & Co., Inc. (MRK) To Go Ex-Dividend on March 16th

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) declared a quarterly dividend on Tuesday, January 27th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 16th will be paid a dividend of 0.85 per share on Tuesday, April 7th. This represents a c) annualized dividend and a yield of 3.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 16th.

Merck & Co., Inc. has raised its dividend by an average of 0.1%annually over the last three years and has raised its dividend annually for the last 14 consecutive years. Merck & Co., Inc. has a dividend payout ratio of 35.0% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Research analysts expect Merck & Co., Inc. to earn $9.90 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $3.40 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 34.3%.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Down 0.9%

NYSE MRK opened at $106.94 on Thursday. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $104.69 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $91.57. The stock has a market capitalization of $265.42 billion, a PE ratio of 14.13, a PEG ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 0.29. Merck & Co., Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $73.31 and a fifty-two week high of $112.90. 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 Tuesday, February 3rd. The company reported $1.94 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.08 by ($0.14). Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 44.54% and a net margin of 29.63%. Equities analysts expect that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.