Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK Shares Purchased by IFM Investors Pty Ltd

IFM Investors Pty Ltd boosted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 2.5% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 522,579 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 12,750 shares during the quarter. IFM Investors Pty Ltd’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $62,861,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of MRK. D.A. Davidson & CO. raised its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 4.4% during the fourth quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 576,959 shares of the company’s stock worth $60,731,000 after purchasing an additional 24,576 shares during the period. Farther Finance Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 48.9% during the 4th quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 97,818 shares of the company’s stock valued at $10,296,000 after buying an additional 32,114 shares during the period. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 12.7% during the 3rd quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. now owns 123,366 shares of the company’s stock worth $10,364,000 after buying an additional 13,940 shares during the last quarter. Campbell Capital Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 3rd quarter worth $1,866,000. Finally, Norris Perne & French LLP MI raised its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 12.8% in the 4th quarter. Norris Perne & French LLP MI now owns 252,162 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,543,000 after buying an additional 28,635 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Down 0.7%

Shares of NYSE:MRK opened at $128.41 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $317.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.90 and a beta of 0.21. The company has a 50 day moving average of $116.54 and a two-hundred day moving average of $114.88. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 52-week low of $76.66 and a 52-week high of $130.29. The company has a quick ratio of 1.06, a current ratio of 1.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported ($1.28) earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($1.47) by $0.19. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 13.59% and a return on equity of 27.55%. The business had revenue of $16.29 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.85 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.22 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 4.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.040-5.160 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 5.18 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 8th. Investors of record on Monday, June 15th will be paid a $0.85 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 15th. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.6%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s payout ratio is 95.77%.

Key Headlines Impacting Merck & Co., Inc.

Here are the key news stories impacting Merck & Co., Inc. this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Bank of America raised its price target on Merck to $141 from $130 and reiterated a buy rating, while Scotiabank lifted its target to $155 from $136 with a sector outperform view, signaling stronger Wall Street confidence in the stock’s upside. Bank of America and Scotiabank raise Merck price targets
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts also highlighted Merck’s lung cancer drug pipeline, saying an upcoming phase 3 readout for OptiTrop-Lung06 could improve the commercial outlook for SAC-TMT and boost future sales potential. Merck’s Lung Cancer Drug Seen Boosting Sales Potential, BofA Says
• Positive Sentiment: Merck announced an agreement with the ADAP Crisis Task Force to improve access to HIV treatment through state programs, which may modestly support sentiment around its infectious-disease franchise. Merck Announces New Agreement with ADAP Crisis Task Force
• Neutral Sentiment: Broader healthcare stocks were softer late Tuesday, which may have added some pressure even as Merck continued to attract company-specific buying interest. Sector Update: Healthcare Stocks Softer Late Afternoon
• Negative Sentiment: Merck is also facing a bipartisan U.S. House investigation into whether clinical trials conducted in China, including at military-linked hospitals and in Xinjiang, raised national security or data-protection concerns, which could weigh on sentiment if the probe escalates. Merck (MRK) Faces U.S. Security Probe Over China Clinical Trials

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Bank of America lifted their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $130.00 to $141.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday. Weiss Ratings lowered Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research note on Friday, May 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted 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. Zacks Research raised shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 17th. Finally, CICC Research initiated coverage on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Wednesday, June 24th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $138.00 price target on the stock. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have issued a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Merck & Co., Inc. has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $131.83.

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.