Korea Investment CORP Sells 198,111 Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Korea Investment CORP trimmed its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 10.0% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 1,777,147 shares of the company’s stock after selling 198,111 shares during the period. Korea Investment CORP’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $149,156,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in MRK. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 29.5% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 38,278 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,808,000 after buying an additional 8,710 shares during the period. Sivia Capital Partners LLC grew its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 52.2% in the 2nd quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 11,494 shares of the company’s stock valued at $910,000 after buying an additional 3,941 shares during the last quarter. Savant Capital LLC raised its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 4.7% in the 2nd quarter. Savant Capital LLC now owns 191,705 shares of the company’s stock valued at $15,175,000 after acquiring an additional 8,643 shares during the period. Atlas Legacy Advisors LLC bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 2nd quarter valued at about $212,000. Finally, Walkner Condon Financial Advisors LLC lifted its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 5.6% during the second quarter. Walkner Condon Financial Advisors LLC now owns 3,253 shares of the company’s stock worth $258,000 after acquiring an additional 173 shares during the last quarter. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on MRK shares. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $92.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 2nd. BMO Capital Markets raised Merck & Co., Inc. from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $82.00 to $130.00 in a report on Thursday, December 18th. Zacks Research downgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Friday, January 9th. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $100.00 to $102.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, December 12th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $150.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 13th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $125.88.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Johannes Jacobus Oosthuizen sold 15,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $121.87, for a total transaction of $1,828,050.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 21,197 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,583,278.39. This represents a 41.44% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Richard R. Deluca sold 37,685 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $120.92, for a total value of $4,556,870.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 160,174 shares in the company, valued at $19,368,240.08. The trade was a 19.05% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last quarter, insiders sold 320,176 shares of company stock worth $38,281,735. 0.13% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:MRK opened at $115.85 on Friday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12-month low of $73.31 and a 12-month high of $125.14. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $114.20 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $98.61. The firm has a market cap of $286.43 billion, a PE ratio of 15.91, a PEG ratio of 2.24 and a beta of 0.27. The company has a quick ratio of 1.30, a current ratio of 1.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 3rd. The company reported $2.04 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.01 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $16.40 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.19 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 28.08% and a return on equity of 44.57%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 5.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.72 earnings per share. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.000-5.150 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share 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. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 16th will be issued a $0.85 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 16th. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.9%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s payout ratio is currently 46.70%.

Merck & Co., Inc. 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.