Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK Shares Purchased by Syon Capital LLC

Syon Capital LLC lifted its position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRKFree Report) by 14.4% in the second quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 29,362 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 3,692 shares during the period. Syon Capital LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $3,773,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Kingdom Financial Group LLC. acquired a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Prosperity Bancshares Inc acquired a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Abound Financial LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Graney & King LLC raised its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 400.0% during the 2nd quarter. Graney & King LLC now owns 250 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 200 shares during the period. Finally, IFC & Insurance Marketing Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $31,000. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently weighed in on MRK shares. Wolfe Research increased their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $155.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 25th. Barclays lifted their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $140.00 to $150.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Morgan Stanley raised Merck & Co., Inc. from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price target for the company from $116.00 to $179.00 in a research note on Thursday, August 20th. Royal Bank Of Canada cut Merck & Co., Inc. from an “outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $142.00 to $150.00 in a report on Thursday, August 20th. Finally, Argus raised their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $145.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 25th. Fifteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Merck & Co., Inc. currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $147.60.

Check Out Our Latest Analysis on MRK

Insider Activity at Merck & Co., Inc.

In other news, EVP David 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 value of $6,805,108.19. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 31,716 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,084,069.32. This trade represents a 62.49% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP David Maraldo sold 18,706 shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $128.72, for a total transaction of $2,407,836.32. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 18,212 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,344,248.64. This trade represents a 50.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 228,238 shares of company stock worth $29,977,783 over the last ninety days. 0.17% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

Shares of MRK stock opened at $152.32 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a current ratio of 1.32. The firm has a market cap of $375.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 121.86, a P/E/G ratio of 6.60 and a beta of 0.21. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $134.20 and its 200-day moving average price is $123.33. Merck & Co., Inc. has a one year low of $77.58 and a one year high of $156.92.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRKGet Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The company reported ($0.13) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.26) by $0.13. The firm had revenue of $16.61 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.37 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 16.73% and a net margin of 4.77%.Merck & Co., Inc.’s revenue was up 5.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.13 EPS. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.660-2.760 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 2.76 EPS for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 7th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.85 per share. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.2%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 15th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s payout ratio is 272.00%.

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.

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Institutional Ownership by Quarter for Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

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