4,477 Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK Shares Purchased by RWC Asset Management LLP

RWC Asset Management LLP increased its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 2.1% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 213,563 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 4,477 shares during the period. Merck & Co., Inc. makes up approximately 1.2% of RWC Asset Management LLP’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 21st biggest position. RWC Asset Management LLP’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $31,033,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. BlackRock Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.5% in the 2nd quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 226,999,837 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,169,479,000 after purchasing an additional 1,073,507 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.9% in the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 120,413,256 shares of the company’s stock worth $15,573,754,000 after purchasing an additional 1,087,583 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.3% in the 2nd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 86,249,283 shares of the company’s stock worth $11,083,033,000 after purchasing an additional 1,934,312 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE increased its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 10.5% during the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 30,774,221 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,701,831,000 after purchasing an additional 2,919,780 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 23.8% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 15,456,039 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,858,938,000 after purchasing an additional 2,969,856 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Trading Down 1.4%

Shares of MRK stock traded down $1.99 on Friday, reaching $145.25. 8,379,092 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 9,663,986. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 52 week low of $82.01 and a 52 week high of $156.92. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $358.35 billion, a PE ratio of 116.20, a P/E/G ratio of 6.83 and a beta of 0.21. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $146.98 and its 200 day simple moving average is $130.17.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 4th. The company reported ($0.13) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.26) by $0.13. The company had revenue of $16.61 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.37 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 16.73% and a net margin of 4.77%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s revenue was up 5.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.13 EPS. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.660-2.760 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 2.64 EPS for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, October 7th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 15th were given a dividend of $0.85 per share. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 15th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 272.00%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MRK has been the topic of several recent research reports. Zacks Research lowered Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Monday, October 19th. Guggenheim lifted their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $146.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 8th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 25th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $152.00 to $175.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 20th. Finally, Barclays increased their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $140.00 to $150.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. Seventeen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Merck & Co., Inc. currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $151.92.

Key Headlines Impacting Merck & Co., Inc.

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

• Positive Sentiment: Merck and Moderna reported positive Phase 3 INTerpath-001 results for the personalized melanoma vaccine, intismeran, combined with Keytruda. The treatment reduced the risk of recurrence or death by 42% and also improved distant metastasis-free survival, supporting the long-term potential of the partnership’s oncology pipeline. Doctors call Moderna and Merck cancer vaccine data a major advancement
• Positive Sentiment: The European Commission approved Keytruda plus Padcev as a perioperative treatment for resectable muscle-invasive bladder cancer, regardless of patients’ cisplatin eligibility. The broader label expands the addressable market and represents the EU’s first approval of a PD-1 inhibitor combined with an antibody-drug conjugate in this setting. Merck wins EU approval for Keytruda plus Padcev
• Neutral Sentiment: Despite strong clinical results, the vaccine announcement triggered a “sell-the-news” reaction. The data largely met elevated Wall Street expectations after an earlier leak, limiting the immediate upside for MRK even though oncologists viewed the results as an important treatment advance. Merck and Moderna shares fall on cancer vaccine results
• Negative Sentiment: Investors remain concerned about valuation and Merck’s future revenue concentration in Keytruda ahead of its patent cliff. Analysts have also characterized the recent rally as leaving limited margin of safety, increasing the risk of profit-taking when news is merely in line with expectations. Merck rally leaves little margin of safety
• Negative Sentiment: Erste Group Bank reduced its FY2026 EPS estimate to $2.63 from $2.73 and its FY2027 estimate to $9.38 from $9.47. Separate previews also anticipate a year-over-year decline in quarterly earnings, adding near-term pressure to the shares. Merck earnings preview

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

In other news, EVP David Maraldo sold 18,706 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $128.72, for a total transaction of $2,407,836.32. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 18,212 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,344,248.64. The trade was a 50.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP David Williams sold 52,847 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $128.77, for a total transaction of $6,805,108.19. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 31,716 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,084,069.32. This represents a 62.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 228,238 shares of company stock valued at $29,977,783. 0.17% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Merck & Co., Inc. Profile

Merck & Co, Inc is a global healthcare company that develops, manufactures and markets prescription medicines, vaccines and animal-health products. Its pharmaceutical business focuses on oncology, infectious diseases, cardiology, immunology and other areas of significant medical need. The company serves patients, healthcare providers and institutions in markets worldwide.

Merck’s principal products include Keytruda, an immunotherapy used to treat a range of cancers; Gardasil and Gardasil 9, vaccines that help protect against human papillomavirus; and Januvia and Janumet, medicines used to manage type 2 diabetes.