GAMMA Investing LLC Has $5.78 Million Stake in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 19.1% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 68,811 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 11,047 shares during the quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $5,775,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of MRK. Legend Financial Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the second quarter valued at $25,000. Kilter Group LLC purchased a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 2nd quarter valued at about $27,000. Bare Financial Services Inc increased its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 51.9% in the 2nd quarter. Bare Financial Services Inc now owns 366 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares during the period. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC lifted its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 141.7% in the first 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. Finally, Evolution Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the second quarter worth approximately $31,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Merck & Co., Inc.

In related news, EVP David Michael Williams sold 8,614 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $83.59, for a total transaction of $720,044.26. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 24,578 shares in the company, valued at $2,054,475.02. This represents a 25.95% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Company insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Up 0.0%

MRK stock opened at $100.34 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.66, a quick ratio of 1.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 1 year low of $73.31 and a 1 year high of $105.84. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $92.33 and a 200 day simple moving average of $85.60. The firm has a market cap of $249.04 billion, a PE ratio of 13.25, a PEG ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 0.29.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, October 30th. The company reported $2.58 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.36 by $0.22. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 44.54% and a net margin of 29.63%.The firm 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 company earned $1.57 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter 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. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Increases Dividend

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Berenberg Bank lowered shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and dropped their price objective for the company from $100.00 to $90.00 in a research note on Wednesday, September 17th. Scotiabank boosted their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, December 4th. Bank of America increased their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $90.00 to $125.00 in a research note on Monday, November 24th. Finally, Citigroup assumed coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Monday, October 13th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $95.00 target price on the stock. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have issued 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 $108.00.

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.