5 Best Income Stocks To Invest In

2. Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 77

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) is a New Jersey-based multinational pharmaceutical company. In April, BofA lifted its price target on the stock to $130 and maintained a Buy rating on the shares, appreciating the company’s plans to acquire Prometheus Biosciences.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK), one of the best dividend stocks, currently pays a quarterly dividend of $0.73 per share, having raised it by 6% in December 2022. With this dividend hike, the company took its dividend growth streak to 12 years. The stock’s dividend yield on April 25 came in at 2.51%.

At the end of December 2022, 77 hedge funds tracked by Insider Monkey owned stakes in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK), with a total value of over $5 billion. Citadel Investment Group was the company’s largest shareholder in Q4.

Artisan Partners mentioned Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) in its Q4 2022 investor letter. Here is what the firm has to say:

“Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) is a provider of health care solutions including prescription medicines, vaccines, biologic therapies, animal health and consumer care products. Shares have benefited from investors seeking safety in areas with less economic and interest rate sensitivity. With about one third of its sales generated by blockbuster oncology drug Keytruda, the key issue for investors is the success of its large R&D pipeline to replace those sales when Keytruda comes off patent in 2028. However, Merck seems to be getting little 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, besides return of capital to shareholders via dividends and share repurchases.”