Private Advisor Group LLC Sells 11,783 Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Private Advisor Group LLC reduced its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 4.1% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 273,347 shares of the company’s stock after selling 11,783 shares during the quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $32,881,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Kingdom Financial Group LLC. bought a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Abound Financial LLC purchased a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Prosperity Bancshares Inc purchased a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $26,000. United Financial Planning Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Finally, High Note Wealth LLC boosted its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 58.9% during the fourth quarter. High Note Wealth LLC now owns 294 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 109 shares in the last quarter. 76.07% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the company. CICC Research started coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Wednesday, June 24th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $138.00 price objective for the company. Bank of America boosted their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $130.00 to $141.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday. 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. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $150.00 to $145.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Finally, Citigroup started coverage on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $125.00 price target for the company. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have issued a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Merck & Co., Inc. presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $131.83.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

Merck & Co., Inc. stock opened at $129.34 on Friday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a twelve month low of $76.66 and a twelve month 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. The company has a market capitalization of $319.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.43, a PEG ratio of 2.76 and a beta of 0.19. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $117.37 and its 200 day moving average is $115.36.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported ($1.28) EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($1.47) by $0.19. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 27.55% and a net margin of 13.59%.The business had revenue of $16.29 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.85 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.22 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter 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. On average, equities research analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 5.19 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The company 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.6%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s payout ratio is presently 95.77%.

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.