Daiwa Securities Group Inc. Lowers Holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Daiwa Securities Group Inc. trimmed its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 12.9% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 492,451 shares of the company’s stock after selling 72,786 shares during the period. Daiwa Securities Group Inc.’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $51,836,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter worth about $3,997,933,000. DLD Asset Management LP increased its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 30.1% in the third quarter. DLD Asset Management LP now owns 47,500,000 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,986,675,000 after purchasing an additional 11,000,000 shares during the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC bought a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter worth about $585,192,000. Invesco Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 16.6% in the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 19,844,936 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,665,585,000 after purchasing an additional 2,821,766 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ameriprise Financial Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 20.7% in the third quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 15,933,909 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,336,877,000 after purchasing an additional 2,735,459 shares during the last quarter. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on MRK. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $142.00 target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Monday, March 30th. Barclays began coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Friday, February 20th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $140.00 target price on the stock. Guggenheim lifted their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $122.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, April 6th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $150.00 target price on the stock in a report on Friday, February 13th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $128.18.

Merck & Co., Inc. Trading Up 4.8%

Shares of NYSE MRK opened at $120.23 on Friday. The business’s 50 day moving average is $116.52 and its two-hundred day moving average is $112.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.30 and a quick ratio of 1.06. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 1-year low of $76.66 and a 1-year high of $125.14. The stock has a market capitalization of $296.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.87, a PEG ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 0.21.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported ($1.28) earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($1.47) by $0.19. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 27.55% and a net margin of 13.59%.The company had revenue of $16.29 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $15.85 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.22 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.9% on a year-over-year basis. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.040-5.160 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 5.17 EPS for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 8th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.85 per share. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 15th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s payout ratio is presently 95.77%.

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.