Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK Shares Acquired by Cannell & Spears LLC

Cannell & Spears LLC grew its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 130.7% during the first quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 798,223 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 452,283 shares during the period. Merck & Co., Inc. accounts for about 1.9% of Cannell & Spears LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 11th biggest holding. Cannell & Spears LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $95,881,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Dai ichi Life Insurance Company Ltd grew its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 18.2% in the 1st quarter. Dai ichi Life Insurance Company Ltd now owns 270,465 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,534,000 after buying an additional 41,648 shares during the last quarter. Bollard Group LLC lifted its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 5.1% in the first quarter. Bollard Group LLC now owns 138,765 shares of the company’s stock valued at $16,692,000 after acquiring an additional 6,691 shares during the last quarter. Pennington Partners & CO. LLC lifted its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 11.5% in the first quarter. Pennington Partners & CO. LLC now owns 2,628 shares of the company’s stock valued at $318,000 after acquiring an additional 270 shares during the last quarter. Compound Planning Inc. boosted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 48.7% in the first quarter. Compound Planning Inc. now owns 93,562 shares of the company’s stock valued at $11,255,000 after acquiring an additional 30,627 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Modern Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 14.3% in the first quarter. Modern Wealth Management LLC now owns 39,645 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,791,000 after acquiring an additional 4,968 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Trending Headlines about Merck & Co., Inc.

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

• Positive Sentiment: Merck announced initial access plans for alimatravir, its investigational once-monthly oral HIV PrEP in Phase 3 development, and said it has signed voluntary licensing agreements covering 129 countries. That broad access strategy could support adoption in large international markets if the drug is approved. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Merck also issued a company release on the same alimatravir access plan, reinforcing that the program is moving forward and that it is trying to expand availability in regions that account for most new HIV diagnoses globally. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Traders also bought a high volume of Merck call options, which may reflect rising bullish speculation around the stock and the HIV pipeline, but it does not by itself change fundamentals. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Par Health launched the first generic version of Janumet XR in the U.S., which may pressure Merck’s diabetes-related sales and adds another competitive headwind for an established product. Article Title

Merck & Co., Inc. Trading Up 0.4%

Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock opened at $131.06 on Friday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 1 year low of $76.66 and a 1 year high of $131.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a current ratio of 1.30. The company has a market capitalization of $323.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.92, a PEG ratio of 5.18 and a beta of 0.19. The company’s fifty day moving average is $121.67 and its two-hundred day moving average is $117.71.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported ($1.28) EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($1.47) by $0.19. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 13.59% and a return on equity of 27.55%. The company had revenue of $16.29 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.85 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.22 earnings per share. Merck & Co., Inc.’s quarterly revenue was up 4.9% on a year-over-year basis. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.040-5.160 EPS. Analysts forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 2.74 earnings per share for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 8th. Investors of record on Monday, June 15th were given a $0.85 dividend. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.6%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 15th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s payout ratio is 95.77%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MRK has been the topic of several research reports. Citigroup began coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $125.00 price objective on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $135.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, July 13th. Scotiabank raised their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $136.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 30th. CICC Research initiated coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Wednesday, June 24th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $138.00 price target on the stock. Finally, BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $135.00 to $142.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, July 13th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have given a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Merck & Co., Inc. currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $133.94.

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.