Gateway Wealth Partners LLC Sells 6,284 Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Gateway Wealth Partners LLC cut its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 37.8% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 10,347 shares of the company’s stock after selling 6,284 shares during the period. Gateway Wealth Partners LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $1,330,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of MRK. Kingdom Financial Group LLC. bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Abound Financial LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Prosperity Bancshares Inc bought a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter worth approximately $26,000. High Note Wealth LLC grew its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 58.9% in the fourth quarter. High Note Wealth LLC now owns 294 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 109 shares during the period. Finally, IFC & Insurance Marketing Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $31,000. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Key Stories Impacting Merck & Co., Inc.

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

• Positive Sentiment: Merck and Moderna reported that their personalized cancer therapy met key Phase 3 goals, improving recurrence-free and distant metastasis-free survival for high-risk melanoma patients when added to Keytruda. The result is the first major late-stage win for an mRNA cancer vaccine and strengthens the potential for regulatory approval and broader oncology applications. MRK/MRNA’s Personalized Cancer Therapy Delivers First Phase III Win
• Positive Sentiment: Several Wall Street firms raised their outlooks for MRK: Goldman Sachs increased its price target to $160 and kept a Buy rating, while BMO raised its target to $170 and UBS lifted its target to $175. Morgan Stanley also upgraded the shares to Overweight with a $179 target after the cancer-trial success.
• Positive Sentiment: Investors see Merck’s newer products, acquired assets and pipeline programs as a potential growth cushion against Keytruda’s eventual patent expiration. The company’s expanding portfolio could help diversify revenue beyond its flagship drug. Can Merck’s New Drugs Offer Growth Cushion Ahead of Keytruda LOE?
• Neutral Sentiment: Unusually high options activity indicates heightened investor interest and potential volatility, but it does not by itself establish the direction of the stock.
• Negative Sentiment: RBC Capital Markets downgraded Merck to Sector Perform and set a $150 target, arguing that execution risks and the 2028 Keytruda loss of exclusivity are being underestimated. RBC said near-term catalysts are attractive, but the stock’s valuation leaves limited room for additional gains. Merck upgraded at Morgan Stanley after cancer trial win; RBC downgrades
• Negative Sentiment: Jefferies separately moved Merck from Strong Buy to Hold. The central concern is that the shares have already rallied substantially on the trial news, making the current valuation appear demanding relative to the remaining patent and execution risks.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MRK has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group downgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday. CICC Research started coverage on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Wednesday, June 24th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $138.00 target price for the company. Daiwa Securities Group raised Merck & Co., Inc. from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $143.00 price target on the stock in a report on Wednesday, August 12th. UBS Group increased their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $145.00 to $175.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $142.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday. Fifteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Merck & Co., Inc. has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $144.10.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP David R. Maraldo sold 18,706 shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $128.72, for a total transaction of $2,407,836.32. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 18,212 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,344,248.64. The trade was a 50.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Jennifer Zachary sold 80,315 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $133.46, for a total value of $10,718,839.90. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 45,509 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,073,631.14. This represents a 63.83% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 228,238 shares of company stock worth $29,977,783 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.17% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE MRK opened at $152.43 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $128.09 and a 200 day moving average of $121.23. The company has a current ratio of 1.32, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22. The firm has a market capitalization of $376.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 121.94, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.43 and a beta of 0.19. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12-month low of $77.58 and a 12-month high of $154.49.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The company reported ($0.13) earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.26) by $0.13. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 4.77% and a return on equity of 16.73%. The business had revenue of $16.61 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.37 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.13 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 5.1% on a year-over-year basis. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.660-2.760 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 2.77 earnings per share for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 7th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 15th will be paid a $0.85 dividend. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.2%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 15th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio is 272.00%.

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.