Texas Yale Capital Corp. Acquires 19,600 Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Texas Yale Capital Corp. increased its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 51.7% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 57,483 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 19,600 shares during the period. Texas Yale Capital Corp.’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $4,825,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Darwin Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 237.4% in the 3rd quarter. Darwin Wealth Management LLC now owns 307 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 216 shares during the period. Kilter Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $27,000. Barnes Dennig Private Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 302.3% in the 3rd quarter. Barnes Dennig Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 354 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 266 shares in the last quarter. Bare Financial Services Inc boosted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 51.9% in the 2nd quarter. Bare Financial Services Inc now owns 366 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 125 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Evolution Wealth Management Inc. bought a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the second quarter valued at $31,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Merck & Co., Inc.

In related news, CMO Chirfi Guindo sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $118.41, for a total value of $1,184,100.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief marketing officer owned 70,615 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,361,522.15. This represents a 12.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Johannes Jacobus Oosthuizen sold 15,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $121.87, for a total value of $1,828,050.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 21,197 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,583,278.39. This trade represents a 41.44% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 320,176 shares of company stock valued at $38,281,735 over the last quarter. 0.09% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Up 1.8%

Shares of NYSE MRK opened at $121.39 on Monday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 1 year low of $73.31 and a 1 year high of $123.33. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $108.35 and its 200-day moving average is $94.54. The company has a current ratio of 1.66, a quick ratio of 1.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77. The firm has a market capitalization of $301.29 billion, a PE ratio of 16.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.27 and a beta of 0.28.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 3rd. The company reported $2.04 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.01 by $0.03. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 28.08% and a return on equity of 45.22%. The business had revenue of $16.40 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.19 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.72 earnings per share. Merck & Co., Inc.’s revenue was up 5.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.000-5.150 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 7th. Investors of record on Monday, March 16th will be paid a dividend of $0.85 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 16th. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.8%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s payout ratio is 46.70%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $150.00 price objective for the company in a report on Friday. Bank of America boosted their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 15th. Scotiabank boosted their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 4th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $92.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 2nd. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Sunday, February 8th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $123.71.

Merck & Co., Inc. Company Profile

Merck & Co, Inc is a global biopharmaceutical company engaged in the discovery, development, manufacture and marketing of prescription medicines, vaccines, biologic therapies and animal health products. Its portfolio spans multiple therapeutic areas with a particular emphasis on oncology, vaccines and infectious disease, as well as therapies for metabolic and chronic conditions. Among its well-known products are the cancer immunotherapy Keytruda (pembrolizumab) and the human papillomavirus vaccine Gardasil; the company also markets a range of medicines and vaccines for veterinary use through Merck Animal Health.

Founded in the late 19th century as the U.S.