Orbimed Advisors LLC bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK – Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 663,400 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $79,800,000. Merck & Co., Inc. comprises about 1.5% of Orbimed Advisors LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 16th largest position.
Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Intelligence Driven Advisers LLC grew its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 4.2% during the first quarter. Intelligence Driven Advisers LLC now owns 11,955 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,438,000 after buying an additional 481 shares during the period. Gateway Wealth Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 271.9% during the 1st quarter. Gateway Wealth Partners LLC now owns 16,631 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,001,000 after acquiring an additional 12,159 shares during the last quarter. Wealth Watch Advisors INC boosted its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 340.8% during the 1st quarter. Wealth Watch Advisors INC now owns 1,728 shares of the company’s stock worth $208,000 after acquiring an additional 1,336 shares during the last quarter. Blue Chip Partners LLC grew its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.1% during the 1st quarter. Blue Chip Partners LLC now owns 249,913 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,062,000 after acquiring an additional 5,084 shares during the period. Finally, Cypress Capital Group grew its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 1.2% during the 1st quarter. Cypress Capital Group now owns 58,740 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,066,000 after acquiring an additional 691 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.
Wall Street Analyst Weigh In
A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. CICC Research assumed coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Wednesday, June 24th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $138.00 target price on the stock. Guggenheim boosted their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $140.00 to $145.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, July 13th. Weiss Ratings cut Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research report on Friday, May 15th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $145.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 8th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $112.00 to $113.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 9th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have issued a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $133.94.
More Merck & Co., Inc. News
Here are the key news stories impacting Merck & Co., Inc. this week:
- Positive Sentiment: Merck announced initial access plans for alimatravir, its investigational once-monthly oral HIV PrEP in Phase 3 development, and said it has signed voluntary licensing agreements covering 129 countries. That broad access strategy could support adoption in large international markets if the drug is approved. Article Title
- Neutral Sentiment: Merck also issued a company release on the same alimatravir access plan, reinforcing that the program is moving forward and that it is trying to expand availability in regions that account for most new HIV diagnoses globally. Article Title
- Neutral Sentiment: Traders also bought a high volume of Merck call options, which may reflect rising bullish speculation around the stock and the HIV pipeline, but it does not by itself change fundamentals. Article Title
- Negative Sentiment: Par Health launched the first generic version of Janumet XR in the U.S., which may pressure Merck’s diabetes-related sales and adds another competitive headwind for an established product. Article Title
Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance
Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock opened at $131.06 on Monday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $121.67 and its 200-day simple moving average is $117.78. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 52 week low of $76.66 and a 52 week high of $131.74. The company has a market capitalization of $323.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.92, a PEG ratio of 5.20 and a beta of 0.19. The company has a quick ratio of 1.06, a current ratio of 1.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02.
Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK – Get Free Report) last released 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 firm 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 revenue was up 4.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.22 earnings per share. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.040-5.160 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 2.74 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement
The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 8th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 15th were given a dividend of $0.85 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 15th. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.6%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 95.77%.
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.
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