Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK Shares Bought by Willis Investment Counsel

Willis Investment Counsel increased its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 19.2% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 313,817 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 50,635 shares during the period. Merck & Co., Inc. comprises approximately 1.4% of Willis Investment Counsel’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 25th largest holding. Willis Investment Counsel’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $26,339,000 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. Darwin Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 237.4% in the 3rd quarter. Darwin Wealth Management LLC now owns 307 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 216 shares during the last quarter. Kilter Group LLC acquired a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the second quarter valued at about $27,000. Barnes Dennig Private Wealth Management LLC raised its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 302.3% in the third quarter. Barnes Dennig Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 354 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 266 shares during the period. Bare Financial Services Inc lifted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 51.9% during the 2nd quarter. Bare Financial Services Inc now owns 366 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 125 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Evolution Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the second quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

Merck & Co., Inc. stock opened at $121.01 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $300.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.00 and a beta of 0.28. Merck & Co., Inc. has a one year low of $73.31 and a one year high of $122.43. The business has a fifty day moving average of $106.23 and a two-hundred day moving average of $92.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 1.44 and a current ratio of 1.66.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 3rd. The company reported $2.04 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.01 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $16.40 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.19 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 45.22% and a net margin of 28.08%.The company’s revenue was up 5.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.72 EPS. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.000-5.150 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 7th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 16th will be issued a $0.85 dividend. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 16th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio is 46.70%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Bank of America lifted their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 15th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $110.00 to $111.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 18th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $115.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Wolfe Research raised Merck & Co., Inc. from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $135.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 8th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Merck & Co., Inc. presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $117.87.

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.