Zacks Research Analysts Reduce Earnings Estimates for MRK

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) – Zacks Research reduced their Q4 2024 earnings per share estimates for shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a note issued to investors on Thursday, November 21st. Zacks Research analyst S. Ganoria now anticipates that the company will earn $1.82 per share for the quarter, down from their prior estimate of $1.93. The consensus estimate for Merck & Co., Inc.’s current full-year earnings is $7.73 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Merck & Co., Inc.’s Q1 2025 earnings at $2.22 EPS, Q2 2025 earnings at $2.42 EPS, Q3 2025 earnings at $2.43 EPS, Q4 2025 earnings at $2.09 EPS, FY2025 earnings at $9.16 EPS, Q1 2026 earnings at $2.34 EPS, Q2 2026 earnings at $2.62 EPS and Q3 2026 earnings at $2.65 EPS.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.50 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $16.66 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.47 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 36.42% and a net margin of 19.23%. The business’s revenue was up 4.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.13 earnings per share.

A number of other brokerages have also issued reports on MRK. Bank of America decreased their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $150.00 to $145.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Sanford C. Bernstein initiated coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $115.00 price target on the stock. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $150.00 to $136.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Daiwa America lowered shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, November 11th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $130.00 to $123.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 1st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Merck & Co., Inc. presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $130.86.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

Merck & Co., Inc. stock opened at $99.18 on Monday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $107.11 and its two-hundred day moving average is $117.75. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 1.36 and a quick ratio of 1.15. The stock has a market capitalization of $250.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.79, a P/E/G ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 0.40. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12-month low of $94.48 and a 12-month high of $134.63.

Merck & Co., Inc. Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 8th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 16th will be paid a $0.81 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 16th. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.27%. This is a positive change from Merck & Co., Inc.’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.77. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 64.57%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Merck & Co., Inc.

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Boyar Asset Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 21.1% in the third quarter. Boyar Asset Management Inc. now owns 5,361 shares of the company’s stock valued at $609,000 after purchasing an additional 935 shares during the period. Sculati Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 1.7% in the 3rd quarter. Sculati Wealth Management LLC now owns 25,259 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,868,000 after buying an additional 419 shares during the last quarter. Eaton Financial Holdings Company LLC purchased a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 3rd quarter valued at about $1,466,000. Anchor Investment Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 1.7% during the third quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC now owns 75,070 shares of the company’s stock valued at $8,525,000 after acquiring an additional 1,228 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Tudor Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the third quarter worth about $427,000. 76.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Merck & Co., Inc.

Merck & Co, Inc operates as a healthcare company worldwide. It operates through two segments, Pharmaceutical and Animal Health. The Pharmaceutical segment offers human health pharmaceutical products in the areas of oncology, hospital acute care, immunology, neuroscience, virology, cardiovascular, and diabetes under the Keytruda, Bridion, Adempas, Lagevrio, Belsomra, Simponi, and Januvia brands, as well as vaccine products consisting of preventive pediatric, adolescent, and adult vaccines under the Gardasil/Gardasil 9, ProQuad, M-M-R II, Varivax, RotaTeq, Live Oral, Vaxneuvance, Pneumovax 23, and Vaqta names.