Sei Investments Co. Has $252.89 Million Holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Sei Investments Co. increased its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 13.9% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 2,102,456 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 256,265 shares during the period. Sei Investments Co. owned about 0.09% of Merck & Co., Inc. worth $252,892,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter valued at $3,997,933,000. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 14.8% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 86,435,458 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,098,196,000 after buying an additional 11,156,354 shares in the last quarter. Cardano Risk Management B.V. acquired a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter worth about $1,012,530,000. Jennison Associates LLC bought a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter worth about $585,192,000. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 37.9% during the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 18,753,390 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,973,983,000 after acquiring an additional 5,152,069 shares during the last quarter. 76.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:MRK opened at $127.61 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $315.16 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.95, a P/E/G ratio of 5.03 and a beta of 0.19. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 1-year low of $76.66 and a 1-year high of $131.74. The company has a current ratio of 1.30, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $120.93 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $117.45.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported ($1.28) earnings per share (EPS) 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 company had revenue of $16.29 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.85 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.22 EPS. The company’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. Equities analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 2.74 earnings per share for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 8th. Investors of record on Monday, June 15th were issued a $0.85 dividend. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.7%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 15th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio is currently 95.77%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MRK has been the subject of several research reports. BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $135.00 to $142.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, July 13th. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $130.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, April 13th. Scotiabank increased their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $136.00 to $155.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 30th. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $112.00 to $113.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have issued a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $133.94.

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.