Gordon Reid Merck & Company MRK-N TOP PICK Jan 09, 2025

It's cheap at 11x forward PE and pays a 3% dividend. Their vaccine business in China has been hurt, but should recover next year. He's looking at it. Likes their drug pipeline.

The new US administration is talking tough about health cost controls, certainly more extreme than in the past. MRK's Keytruda is a blockbuster drug that has a few years to go before the patent ends. Healthcare has been out of favour the past year, but he recommends holding on.

The CEO is doing a great job. It trades cheaper than JNJ or Pfizer. Good growth.

Owns no US pharma, all under pressure. Potential US healthcare reform may target drug prices. Patent-cliff risk. Not a compelling total-return generator. Yield is ~3%, grows at 6%, which lags the market and the sub-index.

It is best in class. It is a large manufacturer of vaccines but the primary driver is an immune therapy drug that is used across many types of cancers and has 200 ongoing trials. It is coming off patent later in the decade. The vaccine take-up could lead to slower growth but this is a shorter term issue.       Buy 24  Hold 8  Sell 0

It reports Tuesday. Despite acquisitions, MRK remains about their drug Keytruda, the cancer treatment, that keeps working. He beats numbers will be good, but he wants to hear about these acquisitions.

Certainly some stocks are less vulnerable to issues involving tariffs. What comes to mind are healthcare companies. You could look at some of the beaten-down companies that really didn't do well last year, as they're doing quite well today. Try this name, which he owns.

Is now too cheap. Pays a 3.4% dividend. New acquisitions will pay off. There's too much worry over the Keytuda off-patent.

Likes he CEO and company, though the company is hung up on Keytruda is the only big drug they have. He likes the stock at this level.