ARS Wealth Advisors Group LLC Raises Stock Holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

ARS Wealth Advisors Group LLC increased its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 5.0% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 171,472 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 8,233 shares during the period. Merck & Co., Inc. makes up approximately 1.4% of ARS Wealth Advisors Group LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 22nd biggest holding. ARS Wealth Advisors Group LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $14,392,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Legend Financial Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 2nd quarter valued at $25,000. Kilter Group LLC bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the second quarter valued at $27,000. Bare Financial Services Inc raised its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 51.9% during the second quarter. Bare Financial Services Inc now owns 366 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares in the last quarter. Evolution Wealth Management Inc. bought a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the second quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC lifted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 141.7% during 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 during the last quarter. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Merck & Co., Inc. Trading Down 2.0%

Shares of MRK opened at $98.25 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $243.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.98, a PEG ratio of 0.91 and a beta of 0.29. Merck & Co., Inc. has a twelve month low of $73.31 and a twelve month high of $105.84. The company has a quick ratio of 1.44, a current ratio of 1.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $92.54 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $85.75.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 30th. The company reported $2.58 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.36 by $0.22. The firm had revenue of $17.28 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $17 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 29.63% and a return on equity of 44.54%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 3.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.57 earnings per share. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2025 guidance at 8.930-8.980 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 8th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 15th will be given a dividend of $0.85 per share. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 15th. This is a positive change from Merck & Co., Inc.’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.81. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio is currently 44.91%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently commented on MRK. Bank of America increased their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $110.00 to $111.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 18th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $100.00 to $102.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, December 12th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Monday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $90.00 to $125.00 in a research report on Monday, November 24th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Merck & Co., Inc. has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $108.00.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP David Michael Williams sold 8,614 shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $83.59, for a total value of $720,044.26. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 24,578 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,054,475.02. This trade represents a 25.95% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. 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.