Red Spruce Capital LLC Reduces Stock Holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Red Spruce Capital LLC lessened its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 39.6% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 25,094 shares of the company’s stock after selling 16,425 shares during the quarter. Red Spruce Capital LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $2,106,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of MRK. Legend Financial Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the second quarter valued at $25,000. Kilter Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the second quarter worth about $27,000. Bare Financial Services Inc increased its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 51.9% during the second quarter. Bare Financial Services Inc now owns 366 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares in the last quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 141.7% in the 1st quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 377 shares of the company’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 221 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Evolution Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 2nd quarter valued at about $31,000. 76.07% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Up 0.0%

Shares of NYSE:MRK opened at $100.34 on Tuesday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $73.31 and a fifty-two week 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’s 50-day simple moving average is $92.33 and its 200-day simple moving average is $85.60. The company has a market cap of $249.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.25, a PEG ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 0.29.

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

Merck & Co., Inc. Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 8th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 15th will be given 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 yield of 3.4%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 42.80%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Merck & Co., Inc. news, EVP David Michael Williams sold 8,614 shares of the business’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 sale, the executive vice president directly owned 24,578 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,054,475.02. The trade was a 25.95% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MRK has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Bank of America lifted their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday. Citigroup began coverage on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Monday, October 13th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $95.00 target price on the stock. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $100.00 to $102.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Monday, December 8th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised Merck & Co., Inc. from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $90.00 to $125.00 in a report on Monday, November 24th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently 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.