Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK Shares Sold by Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC

Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC reduced its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 71.8% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 367,253 shares of the company’s stock after selling 936,627 shares during the period. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $30,863,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew 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 valued at $4,263,991,000 after purchasing an additional 4,636,183 shares during the last quarter. DLD Asset Management LP acquired a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the second quarter worth about $2,889,340,000. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the second quarter valued at approximately $2,858,570,000. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 23.5% in the second quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 27,032,601 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,139,901,000 after buying an additional 5,135,748 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fisher Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.3% in the 2nd quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 25,013,697 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,980,084,000 after buying an additional 567,900 shares during the period. 76.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Up 0.2%

MRK opened at $122.05 on Monday. The company has a fifty day moving average of $110.66 and a two-hundred day moving average of $96.02. The stock has a market capitalization of $302.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.77, a PEG ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 0.28. Merck & Co., Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $73.31 and a fifty-two week high of $123.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 1.44 and a current ratio of 1.66.

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

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 7th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 16th will be paid a dividend of $0.85 per share. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 16th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio is presently 46.70%.

Insider Activity

In other Merck & Co., Inc. news, EVP Jennifer Zachary sold 121,573 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $119.15, for a total transaction of $14,485,422.95. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 68,916 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,211,341.40. This trade represents a 63.82% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CMO Chirfi Guindo sold 20,000 shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $121.88, for a total transaction of $2,437,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief marketing officer owned 80,615 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,825,356.20. This trade represents a 19.88% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 320,176 shares of company stock worth $38,281,735. Insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently commented on MRK. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 4th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $92.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 2nd. Cantor Fitzgerald upped their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $116.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 4th. Barclays assumed coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Friday. They set an “overweight” rating and a $140.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Citigroup upped their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $115.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Merck & Co., Inc. presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $124.80.

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.