Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. Lowers Holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. decreased its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 4.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 261,332 shares of the company’s stock after selling 11,310 shares during the quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc.’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $28,451,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. DLD Asset Management LP raised its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 30.1% during the third quarter. DLD Asset Management LP now owns 47,500,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,986,675,000 after buying an additional 11,000,000 shares during the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc increased its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 5.9% in the 3rd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 20,659,157 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,733,923,000 after purchasing an additional 1,156,112 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 16.6% in the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 19,844,936 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,665,585,000 after purchasing an additional 2,821,766 shares in the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 20.7% in the 3rd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 15,933,909 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,336,877,000 after purchasing an additional 2,735,459 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB increased its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.0% in the 3rd quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 10,945,187 shares of the company’s stock worth $876,600,000 after purchasing an additional 209,759 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Merck & Co., Inc. news, insider Johannes Jacobus Oosthuizen sold 15,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $121.87, for a total transaction of $1,828,050.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 21,197 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,583,278.39. The trade was a 41.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CMO Chirfi Guindo sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $118.41, for a total value of $1,184,100.00. Following the sale, the chief marketing officer directly owned 70,615 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,361,522.15. This represents a 12.40% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 320,176 shares of company stock valued at $38,281,735 over the last ninety days. 0.13% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

Shares of MRK opened at $115.42 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 1.54 and a quick ratio of 1.30. Merck & Co., Inc. has a one year low of $73.31 and a one year high of $125.14. The firm has a market capitalization of $285.07 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.85, a PEG ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 0.26. The business has a fifty day moving average of $119.18 and a 200 day moving average of $105.58.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 3rd. The company reported $2.04 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.01 by $0.03. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 44.57% and a net margin of 28.08%.The company had revenue of $16.40 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.19 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.72 earnings per share. Merck & Co., Inc.’s revenue was up 5.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.000-5.150 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 7th. Investors of record on Monday, March 16th were issued a $0.85 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 16th. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.9%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s payout ratio is presently 46.70%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have commented on MRK shares. Cantor Fitzgerald lifted their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $116.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, April 6th. Zacks Research raised Merck & Co., Inc. from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 17th. Wall Street Zen raised Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, March 28th. Finally, Guggenheim lifted their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $122.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $128.47.

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.