Gateway Investment Advisers LLC Has $55.65 Million Stake in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Posted by Stanley Muller on Aug 14th, 2026

Gateway Investment Advisers LLC trimmed its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK – Free Report) by 2.4% in the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 433,052 shares of the company’s stock after selling 10,795 shares during the quarter. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $55,647,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in MRK. Webster Bank N. A. raised its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.7% in the second quarter. Webster Bank N. A. now owns 17,577 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,259,000 after acquiring an additional 124 shares during the last quarter. Interchange Capital Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 51.4% in the second quarter. Interchange Capital Partners LLC now owns 16,005 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,057,000 after purchasing an additional 5,432 shares in the last quarter. Owl Creek Wealth Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 8.2% in the second quarter. Owl Creek Wealth Partners LLC now owns 2,726 shares of the company’s stock valued at $350,000 after purchasing an additional 206 shares in the last quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC raised its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 6.3% in the 2nd quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 209,288 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,893,000 after purchasing an additional 12,447 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Kavar Capital Partners Group LLC raised its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 1.0% in the 2nd quarter. Kavar Capital Partners Group LLC now owns 16,019 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,058,000 after purchasing an additional 155 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Merck & Co., Inc.

In related news, EVP David Michael Williams sold 52,847 shares of the firm’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 in the company, valued at $4,084,069.32. This trade represents a 62.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Jennifer Zachary sold 80,315 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $133.46, for a total value of $10,718,839.90. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 45,509 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,073,631.14. This trade represents a 63.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last quarter, insiders sold 228,238 shares of company stock valued at $29,977,783. Insiders own 0.17% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on MRK shares. CICC Research began coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Wednesday, June 24th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $138.00 price target on the stock. Barclays boosted their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $140.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $135.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, July 13th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $145.00 to $150.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 8th. Finally, Guggenheim boosted their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $145.00 to $146.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. Fifteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $135.50.

Check Out Our Latest Stock Report on MRK

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

Merck & Co., Inc. stock opened at $135.57 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.30, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02. The firm has a market capitalization of $334.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 108.46, a PEG ratio of 5.73 and a beta of 0.19. The business has a 50-day moving average of $125.25 and a 200-day moving average of $119.83. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 1 year low of $77.58 and a 1 year high of $135.68.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK – Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The company reported ($0.13) earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.26) by $0.13. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 4.77% and a return on equity of 16.05%. The business had revenue of $16.61 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.37 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.13 EPS. Merck & Co., Inc.’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.1% on a year-over-year basis. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.660-2.760 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 2.77 EPS for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 7th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 15th will be issued a $0.85 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 15th. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.5%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 272.00%.

Merck & Co., Inc. News Summary

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

Positive Sentiment: Analyst upgrades and higher valuations: Daiwa Securities upgraded Merck to “outperform” with a $143 price target, while other analyst commentary placed fair-value estimates in the $140–$155 range. A separate valuation assessment raised fair value from $132.78 to $136.85, citing pipeline progress and recent business-development activity. Merck fair value article
Positive Sentiment: Shares reached a record level: Merck was among the companies touching fresh all-time highs, signaling strong recent momentum and investor confidence in its earnings outlook. Merck all-time high article
Positive Sentiment: Pipeline and core products support growth: Analysts highlighted Merck’s late-stage pipeline, business-development efforts and continued demand for Keytruda. Recent quarterly results also showed revenue of $16.61 billion, above expectations, with oncology and Animal Health cited as important contributors. Merck earnings call analysis
Neutral Sentiment: Dividend provides income support: Merck declared a quarterly dividend of $0.85 per share, or $3.40 annualized. The payout may support demand for the stock, although the reported payout ratio is elevated.
Negative Sentiment: Cluster of executive sales: Several executives sold shares, including Jennifer Zachary’s approximately $10.7 million sale, Chirfi Guindo’s $1.35 million sale and Richard Deluca’s additional $1.54 million sale. These transactions reduced their holdings substantially and could weigh modestly on sentiment, though insiders retained shares.
Negative Sentiment: Keytruda concentration risk: Keytruda remains Merck’s main growth engine, but future patent loss and increasing competition could pressure sales and earnings. Investors will look for newer products and pipeline candidates to offset that risk. Keytruda growth outlook article

Merck & Co., Inc. 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.