Contravisory Investment Management Inc. Raises Stake in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Posted by Stanley Muller on Jun 26th, 2026

Contravisory Investment Management Inc. increased its position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK – Free Report) by 9.0% during the first quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 77,298 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 6,385 shares during the quarter. Merck & Co., Inc. makes up approximately 1.9% of Contravisory Investment Management Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 13th largest holding. Contravisory Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $9,298,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in MRK. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 254,322,763 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,770,014,000 after acquiring an additional 2,185,853 shares during the period. State Street Corp increased its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 1.6% in the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 120,040,168 shares of the company’s stock worth $12,737,504,000 after buying an additional 1,859,990 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 14.8% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 86,435,458 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,098,196,000 after purchasing an additional 11,156,354 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 60,047,984 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,307,572,000 after purchasing an additional 249,110 shares during the last quarter. Finally, DLD Asset Management LP increased its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 30.1% in the third quarter. DLD Asset Management LP now owns 47,500,000 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,986,675,000 after purchasing an additional 11,000,000 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently weighed in on MRK shares. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $142.00 price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Monday, March 30th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $130.00 to $145.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, April 13th. CICC Research assumed coverage on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Wednesday. They set an “outperform” rating and a $138.00 price target on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $150.00 to $145.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 17th. One research 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. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Merck & Co., Inc. currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $128.72.

Check Out Our Latest Report on Merck & Co., Inc.

Trending Headlines about Merck & Co., Inc.

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

Positive Sentiment: The European Commission approved Keytruda plus Padcev for adults with cisplatin-ineligible resectable muscle-invasive bladder cancer, expanding Merck’s oncology franchise in Europe. European Commission Approves KEYTRUDA Plus Padcev
Positive Sentiment: The FDA approved Keytruda and Keytruda Qlex, each combined with Gilead’s Trodelvy, as a first-line treatment for PD-L1-positive advanced triple-negative breast cancer, adding another growth opportunity for the drug. FDA Approves Keytruda and Trodelvy for TNBC
Positive Sentiment: Analyst commentary has also been supportive, with CICC Research initiating coverage at outperform and a price target above the recent trading range, reinforcing bullish sentiment around the stock. Merck Coverage Update
Neutral Sentiment: Other reports noted that competitor Gilead won EC approval to expand Trodelvy’s label in metastatic TNBC, which is relevant to Merck because Trodelvy is part of the newly approved Keytruda combination, but the net market impact is still unclear. Gilead Wins EC Approval to Expand Trodelvy’s Label
Neutral Sentiment: Several analyst notes were mixed, including Citi’s hold rating and Scotiabank’s buy rating, suggesting the latest move is being driven more by product news than by a major change in analyst consensus. Citi Keeps Their Hold Rating on Merck & Company

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

NYSE:MRK opened at $125.36 on Friday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 1-year low of $76.66 and a 1-year high of $125.96. The firm has a market capitalization of $309.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.31, a PEG ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.21. The company’s 50-day moving average is $115.88 and its two-hundred day moving average is $114.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.30 and a quick ratio of 1.06.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK – Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported ($1.28) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($1.47) by $0.19. The company had revenue of $16.29 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $15.85 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 27.55% and a net margin of 13.59%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 4.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.22 earnings per share. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.040-5.160 EPS. Analysts forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 5.17 EPS for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 8th. Investors of record on Monday, June 15th will be issued a $0.85 dividend. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.7%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 15th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 95.77%.

Merck & Co., Inc. Company Profile

(Free Report)

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.