Meiji Yasuda Life Insurance Co Reduces Position in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Meiji Yasuda Life Insurance Co reduced its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 2.8% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 92,212 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,703 shares during the period. Meiji Yasuda Life Insurance Co’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $8,277,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 29.5% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 38,278 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,808,000 after acquiring an additional 8,710 shares during the last quarter. American Assets Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter valued at about $398,000. Guardian Wealth Advisors LLC NC boosted its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 12.7% during the 4th quarter. Guardian Wealth Advisors LLC NC now owns 9,304 shares of the company’s stock valued at $926,000 after acquiring an additional 1,052 shares during the last quarter. Humankind Investments LLC boosted its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 22.2% during the 4th quarter. Humankind Investments LLC now owns 28,909 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,876,000 after acquiring an additional 5,248 shares during the last quarter. Finally, K2 Principal Fund L.P. acquired a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter valued at about $1,296,000. 76.07% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Merck & Co., Inc. Trading Up 0.6%

Shares of NYSE MRK opened at $84.59 on Monday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a twelve month low of $73.31 and a twelve month high of $120.30. The company has a current ratio of 1.42, a quick ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $82.62 and a 200-day simple moving average of $82.97. The stock has a market capitalization of $211.28 billion, a PE ratio of 13.03, a PEG ratio of 0.87 and a beta of 0.37.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 29th. The company reported $2.13 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.03 by $0.10. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 41.05% and a net margin of 25.79%.The business had revenue of $15.81 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $15.92 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2025 guidance at 8.870-8.970 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 7th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 15th will be given a dividend of $0.81 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 15th. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.8%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio is currently 49.92%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MRK has been the topic of several recent research reports. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $97.00 to $90.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 30th. Cantor Fitzgerald cut Merck & Co., Inc. from an “overweight” rating to a “cautious” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 20th. Citigroup reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $84.00 price target (down from $115.00) on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Wednesday, May 14th. Finally, Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $99.00 to $98.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $107.44.

Merck & Co., Inc. Company 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.