Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK Shares Sold by US Bancorp DE

US Bancorp DE lowered its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 4.1% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 1,633,247 shares of the company’s stock after selling 68,963 shares during the period. US Bancorp DE’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $137,079,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

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

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock opened at $122.52 on Thursday. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $112.11 and a 200-day simple moving average of $96.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 1.44 and a current ratio of 1.66. Merck & Co., Inc. has a one year low of $73.31 and a one year high of $125.14. The company has a market cap of $304.10 billion, a PE ratio of 16.83, a P/E/G ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 0.28.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last issued its earnings results 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. The firm had revenue of $16.40 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.19 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 28.08% and a return on equity of 45.22%. The firm’s revenue was up 5.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.72 earnings per share. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.000-5.150 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 7th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 16th will be paid a $0.85 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 16th. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.8%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 46.70%.

Insider Activity at Merck & Co., Inc.

In other Merck & Co., Inc. news, EVP Richard R. Deluca sold 37,685 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $120.92, for a total transaction of $4,556,870.20. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 160,174 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $19,368,240.08. This trade represents a 19.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CMO Chirfi Guindo sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $118.41, for a total transaction of $1,184,100.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief marketing officer directly owned 70,615 shares in the company, valued at $8,361,522.15. This trade represents a 12.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 320,176 shares of company stock worth $38,281,735 over the last three months. Company insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have weighed in on MRK. UBS Group lifted their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $105.00 to $130.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 7th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $150.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Friday, February 13th. BMO Capital Markets raised shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $82.00 to $130.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 18th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $100.00 to $102.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, December 12th. Finally, Citigroup raised their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $115.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 4th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $125.88.

About Merck & Co., Inc.

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.