Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK Stock Holdings Cut by Hunter Perkins Capital Management LLC

Hunter Perkins Capital Management LLC lowered its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 9.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 102,496 shares of the company’s stock after selling 10,315 shares during the quarter. Merck & Co., Inc. makes up approximately 2.5% of Hunter Perkins Capital Management LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 8th biggest position. Hunter Perkins Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $10,875,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Worth Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter worth approximately $579,000. Quad Cities Investment Group LLC bought a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $251,000. Stillwater Capital Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Stillwater Capital Advisors LLC now owns 182,508 shares of the company’s stock valued at $19,211,000 after buying an additional 880 shares during the last quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC increased its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 4.1% during the fourth quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC now owns 4,972 shares of the company’s stock valued at $523,000 after buying an additional 197 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fairvoy Private Wealth LLC raised its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 8.4% in the fourth quarter. Fairvoy Private Wealth LLC now owns 4,471 shares of the company’s stock worth $471,000 after acquiring an additional 348 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

Merck & Co., Inc. stock opened at $119.77 on Friday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 52-week low of $73.31 and a 52-week high of $125.14. The company has a quick ratio of 1.30, a current ratio of 1.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $116.65 and its 200 day moving average is $101.93. The company has a market cap of $296.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.45, a PEG ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 0.27.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 3rd. The company reported $2.04 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.01 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $16.40 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.19 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 28.08% and a return on equity of 44.57%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 5.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.72 EPS. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.000-5.150 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 7th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 16th 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, March 16th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s payout ratio is presently 46.70%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Merck & Co., Inc.

In other news, CMO Chirfi Guindo sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $118.41, for a total transaction of $1,184,100.00. Following the transaction, the chief marketing officer owned 70,615 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,361,522.15. The trade was a 12.40% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Jennifer Zachary sold 121,573 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $119.15, for a total value of $14,485,422.95. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 68,916 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,211,341.40. This represents a 63.82% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 320,176 shares of company stock valued at $38,281,735. Corporate insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Scotiabank lifted their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 4th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $100.00 to $102.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, December 12th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $135.00 to $150.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, March 12th. Finally, UBS Group upped their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $105.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 7th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $127.13.

Merck & Co., Inc. News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: Merck announced a US$6.7B acquisition of Terns Pharmaceuticals to add TERN-701 (an investigational oral CML therapy) to its oncology/hematology pipeline—a clear move to build revenue and R&D options ahead of Keytruda’s planned 2028 exclusivity loss. Merck Targets Post Keytruda Future With US$6.7b Terns Acquisition
• Positive Sentiment: RBC reiterated an Outperform and kept a $142 price target after Merck’s Terns call, signaling sell?side support for the strategy despite questions about the transaction premium. RBC Reiterates Merck (MRK) Outperform
• Positive Sentiment: Agilent won FDA approval for the PD?L1 22C3 companion diagnostic in esophageal/GEJ carcinoma, which can help identify patients for Keytruda treatment—supportive for near?term uptake in that indication. Agilent receives FDA approval for PD-L1 1HC 22C3 pharmDx
• Positive Sentiment: High-profile bullish commentary (e.g., Jim Cramer) and option/trade ideas targeting MRK indicate elevated investor interest and constructive conviction in Merck as a defensive large?cap pharma. Jim Cramer on Merck & Co.
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst model tweaks are minor: Erste marginally raised FY2026 EPS estimates (from $5.12 to $5.13), reflecting limited near?term changes to consensus earnings expectations. MarketBeat analyst update
• Neutral Sentiment: Coverage pieces note Merck has outperformed recently (stock up ~50% over six months); some articles offer tactical trade ideas (options/covered calls) that reflect market momentum rather than fundamental shifts. Merck Stock Soars 50% in 6 Months
• Negative Sentiment: Keytruda’s planned 2028 loss of exclusivity remains the central long?term risk—analysts and articles stress patent cliff exposure and some weak vaccine sales, which temper valuation upside. Zacks: Merck Stock Soars 50% in 6 Months
• Negative Sentiment: The proposed Terns transaction may face rival interest and is the subject of a shareholder?lawyer investigation (Kahn Swick & Foti), introducing deal execution, regulatory and legal risk that could delay or change terms. MSN: Merck’s Terns acquisition may face rival interest BusinessWire: KSF Investigation

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.