Maxele Advisors LLC Acquires New Holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Maxele Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 5,175 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $434,000.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. One Charles Private Wealth Services LLC boosted its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 3.3% during the 3rd quarter. One Charles Private Wealth Services LLC now owns 3,464 shares of the company’s stock worth $291,000 after purchasing an additional 111 shares during the period. Dakota Community Bank & Trust NA raised its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 3.4% in the third quarter. Dakota Community Bank & Trust NA now owns 3,566 shares of the company’s stock valued at $299,000 after purchasing an additional 116 shares during the period. Security National Bank of Sioux City Iowa IA lifted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 3.6% during the third quarter. Security National Bank of Sioux City Iowa IA now owns 3,402 shares of the company’s stock worth $286,000 after purchasing an additional 119 shares in the last quarter. Investors Research Corp lifted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 1.3% during the third quarter. Investors Research Corp now owns 9,325 shares of the company’s stock worth $783,000 after purchasing an additional 120 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Trust Point Inc. boosted its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.8% during the third quarter. Trust Point Inc. now owns 14,834 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,245,000 after buying an additional 120 shares during the period. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Merck & Co., Inc.

In other news, CFO Caroline Litchfield sold 41,997 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $119.61, for a total transaction of $5,023,261.17. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 90,192 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,787,865.12. The trade was a 31.77% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CMO Chirfi Guindo sold 20,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $121.88, for a total transaction of $2,437,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief marketing officer owned 80,615 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,825,356.20. The trade was a 19.88% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 320,176 shares of company stock valued at $38,281,735 over the last three months. 0.09% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MRK has been the subject of a number of research reports. BMO Capital Markets raised Merck & Co., Inc. from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $82.00 to $130.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 18th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $92.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 2nd. Citigroup lifted their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $115.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 4th. Zacks Research lowered shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Friday, January 9th. Finally, TD Cowen increased their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $100.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 20th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $126.81.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Down 0.2%

Merck & Co., Inc. stock opened at $115.35 on Tuesday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 1-year low of $73.31 and a 1-year high of $125.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 1.54 and a quick ratio of 1.30. The stock has a market cap of $285.18 billion, a PE ratio of 15.84, a P/E/G ratio of 2.24 and a beta of 0.27. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $115.42 and its two-hundred day moving average is $100.02.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 3rd. The company reported $2.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.01 by $0.03. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 44.57% and a net margin of 28.08%.The business had revenue of $16.40 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.19 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.72 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 5.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.000-5.150 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect 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. Investors of record on Monday, March 16th will be issued a $0.85 dividend. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 16th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio is 46.70%.

Merck & Co., Inc. Company 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.