Krilogy Financial LLC Has $3.14 Million Stock Position in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Krilogy Financial LLC raised its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 131.8% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 37,144 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 21,122 shares during the quarter. Krilogy Financial LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $3,135,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. DLD Asset Management LP bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the second quarter valued at $2,889,340,000. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $2,858,570,000. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 23.5% in the 2nd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 27,032,601 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,139,901,000 after purchasing an additional 5,135,748 shares during the last quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership raised its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 35.5% during the 2nd quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 19,456,096 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,540,145,000 after buying an additional 5,094,088 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 9.4% during the 2nd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 53,865,466 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,263,991,000 after buying an additional 4,636,183 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Up 1.8%

Shares of MRK opened at $119.24 on Thursday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 52 week low of $73.31 and a 52 week high of $122.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 1.44 and a current ratio of 1.66. The firm has a market capitalization of $295.96 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.38, a P/E/G ratio of 2.19 and a beta of 0.28. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $107.55 and a 200-day simple moving average of $93.93.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 3rd. The company reported $2.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.01 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $16.40 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.19 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 28.08% and a return on equity of 45.22%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.72 EPS. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.000-5.150 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 7th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 16th will be paid a $0.85 dividend. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 16th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s payout ratio is presently 46.70%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have weighed in on the company. Wolfe Research raised Merck & Co., Inc. from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $135.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. Zacks Research cut shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Friday, January 9th. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $100.00 to $102.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, December 12th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $110.00 to $111.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 18th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald upped their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $116.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 4th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Merck & Co., Inc. presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $120.93.

Insider Activity

In related news, CMO Chirfi Guindo sold 10,000 shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $118.41, for a total value of $1,184,100.00. Following the sale, the chief marketing officer owned 70,615 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,361,522.15. The trade was a 12.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Johannes Jacobus Oosthuizen sold 15,000 shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $121.87, for a total value of $1,828,050.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 21,197 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,583,278.39. The trade was a 41.44% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 320,176 shares of company stock worth $38,281,735. Corporate insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

About Merck & Co., Inc.

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.