5 Best Dividend Achievers to Buy According to Hedge Funds

4. Merck & Company, Inc. (NYSE: MRK)

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 79
Dividend Yield: 3.34%
Number of Years of Consistent Dividend Growth: 11

Merck & Company, Inc. (NYSE: MRK) is an American multinational company operating in the pharmaceuticals and medical sectors. The company is headquartered in New Jersey and ranks 4th on our list of the best dividend achievers to buy according to hedge funds.

With a $92 price target and a Buy rating, analyst Robyn Karnauskas took over coverage of Merck & Company, Inc. (NYSE: MRK) shares this July.

In the first quarter of 2021, Merck & Company, Inc. (NYSE: MRK) had an EPS of $1.40, surpassing the previous quarter’s $1.32 EPS. The company’s revenue was $12.08 billion, up 0.19% year over year but missing estimates by $567.83 million. Merck & Company, Inc. (NYSE: MRK) has also gained 4.78% in the past 6 months and 0.84% year to date.

By the end of the first quarter of 2021, 79 hedge funds out of the 866 tracked by Insider Monkey held stakes in Merck & Company, Inc. (NYSE: MRK) worth roughly $6.49 billion. This is compared to 82 hedge funds in the previous quarter with a total stake value of approximately $7.17 billion.

Artisan Partners, a high value-added investment management firm, mentioned Merck & Company, Inc. (NYSE: MRK) in its first-quarter 2021 investor letter. Here’s what they said:

“In Q1, we initiated a position in Merck, a provider of health care solutions including prescription medicines, vaccines, biologic therapies, animal health and consumer care products. We purchased Merck when the stock came under pressure in part on concerns that the newly minted Biden administration could implement regulatory changes and lower drug costs in the pharmaceutical industry. Recent, but anticipated changes to Merck’s management team have also weighed on shares, as have concerns over the company’s heavy reliance on immunotherapy treatment Keytruda. Notably, Merck is not getting much credit from investors for the 60+ programs it has in clinical development, despite having several solid and large new product opportunities. Additionally, the company’s strong balance sheet and robust free cash flow provide it multiple options for future partnerships and acquisitions. While Merck is undergoing a period of transition, we think the company’s fundamentals are strong and believe changes to management should be a catalyst for improvement.”