Nichols & Pratt Advisers LLP MA Sells 4,982 Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Nichols & Pratt Advisers LLP MA trimmed its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 1.1% during the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 446,639 shares of the company’s stock after selling 4,982 shares during the period. Merck & Co., Inc. accounts for about 3.5% of Nichols & Pratt Advisers LLP MA’s holdings, making the stock its 11th largest position. Nichols & Pratt Advisers LLP MA’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $53,726,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in MRK. Chesapeake Wealth Management increased its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Chesapeake Wealth Management now owns 14,740 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,552,000 after acquiring an additional 87 shares during the period. South Plains Financial Inc. lifted its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. South Plains Financial Inc. now owns 15,535 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,635,000 after acquiring an additional 89 shares during the period. Syverson Strege & Co lifted its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.2% in the 4th quarter. Syverson Strege & Co now owns 4,142 shares of the company’s stock worth $436,000 after acquiring an additional 90 shares during the period. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV lifted its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.4% in the 1st quarter. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV now owns 23,433 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,819,000 after acquiring an additional 91 shares during the period. Finally, Westside Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 3.1% during the 4th quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,142 shares of the company’s stock worth $331,000 after purchasing an additional 93 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on MRK. Scotiabank boosted their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $136.00 to $155.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 30th. UBS Group raised their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $130.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, April 13th. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $142.00 price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Wednesday. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $145.00 to $150.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Citigroup began coverage on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $125.00 price objective for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have given a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $132.11.

More Merck & Co., Inc. News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed its outperform rating on Merck and set a $142 price target, signaling meaningful upside from current levels. Benzinga report on RBC rating
• Positive Sentiment: Wells Fargo raised its price target on Merck to $150 and kept an overweight rating, adding to the bullish analyst tone around the stock. Benzinga report on Wells Fargo price target
• Positive Sentiment: Merck’s recent KEYTRUDA approvals in breast and bladder cancer broaden the drug’s use in difficult-to-treat cancers and strengthen the company’s oncology franchise ahead of future exclusivity losses. Article on KEYTRUDA approvals
• Positive Sentiment: Merck also reached a new access agreement for its HIV treatment IDVYNSO, improving commercial access and adding another supportive development for the valuation story. Article on HIV access deal
• Neutral Sentiment: Merck is trading above both its 50-day and 200-day moving averages, which technically supports the stock, but the broader picture still includes patent expiry and vaccine-related concerns. Zacks technical analysis
• Neutral Sentiment: A separate research roundup highlighted Merck alongside other large-cap names, but did not introduce a new company-specific catalyst. Top Research Reports article
• Negative Sentiment: Some commentary noted Merck’s recent pullback and continuing investor focus on its post-Keytruda exclusivity outlook, which remains the main long-term risk to the stock. Article on valuation narrative

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Down 2.1%

NYSE MRK opened at $126.10 on Thursday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 1-year low of $76.66 and a 1-year high of $130.29. The company has a market capitalization of $311.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.52, a PEG ratio of 2.75 and a beta of 0.19. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $118.27 and its two-hundred day moving average is $116.06. The company has a current ratio of 1.30, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02.

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, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($1.47) by $0.19. The business had revenue of $16.29 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $15.85 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 27.55% and a net margin of 13.59%.Merck & Co., Inc.’s quarterly revenue was up 4.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.22 EPS. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.040-5.160 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 5.19 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

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

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.