Occidental Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK – Free Report) by 24.0% during the second quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 56,777 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 11,002 shares during the quarter. Merck & Co., Inc. accounts for approximately 0.7% of Occidental Asset Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 29th largest position. Occidental Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $7,296,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.
A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in MRK. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 1.6% during the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 120,040,168 shares of the company’s stock valued at $12,737,504,000 after purchasing an additional 1,859,990 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 14.8% in the fourth 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 increased its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.4% in the fourth 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. Morgan Stanley raised its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 44,946,021 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,731,018,000 after acquiring an additional 359,486 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter worth approximately $3,997,933,000. 76.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.
Analysts Set New Price Targets
Several analysts have weighed in on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group cut shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 19th. CICC Research started coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Wednesday, June 24th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $138.00 price objective on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $145.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 8th. Scotiabank upped their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $136.00 to $155.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 30th. Finally, Bank of America increased their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $130.00 to $141.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 30th. Fifteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $147.60.
Key Merck & Co., Inc. News
Here are the key news stories impacting Merck & Co., Inc. this week:
- Positive Sentiment: Positive topline INTerpath-001 results strengthened expectations that the vaccine could extend KEYTRUDA’s growth runway and create a potentially important new oncology franchise. Merck Surges on a Melanoma Win
- Positive Sentiment: Analysts raised their valuation expectations: Wolfe Research increased its price target to $180 and assigned an “outperform” rating, while Argus raised its target to $170 and reiterated a “buy” rating. Wolfe Research Price Target
- Positive Sentiment: Investors are also anticipating a concentrated series of regulatory decisions and clinical readouts this fall, which could produce additional upside if Merck’s pipeline delivers. What Would It Take to Get MRK Stock to $200?
- Neutral Sentiment: The cancer-vaccine opportunity remains early. The available evidence is limited, and potential barriers include manufacturing complexity, cost, patient selection, and the need for regulatory review and broader clinical validation. How the Merck/Moderna Cancer Vaccine Works
- Negative Sentiment: After the recent rally, MRK is trading near or above several analysts’ prior targets, leaving less room for disappointment and making future gains increasingly dependent on successful trial results, FDA decisions, and evidence that the post-KEYTRUDA growth strategy can scale.
Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance
Shares of NYSE MRK opened at $156.54 on Wednesday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a twelve month low of $77.58 and a twelve month high of $156.92. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $129.64 and a 200 day simple moving average of $121.80. The company has a market capitalization of $386.22 billion, a PE ratio of 125.23, a P/E/G ratio of 6.32 and a beta of 0.19. The company has a quick ratio of 1.10, a current ratio of 1.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22.
Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK – Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The company reported ($0.13) EPS 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 16.73%. The business had revenue of $16.61 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.37 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.13 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 5.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.660-2.760 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 2.76 EPS for the current year.
Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement
The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 7th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 15th will be paid a $0.85 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 15th. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.2%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s payout ratio is 272.00%.
Insider Activity
In related news, EVP Jennifer Zachary sold 80,315 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $133.46, for a total transaction of $10,718,839.90. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 45,509 shares in the company, valued at $6,073,631.14. The trade was a 63.83% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Chirfi Guindo sold 15,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $131.00, for a total transaction of $1,965,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 46,613 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,106,303. This represents a 24.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last three months, insiders sold 228,238 shares of company stock worth $29,977,783. Company insiders own 0.17% of the company’s stock.
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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