Janus Henderson Group PLC Buys 995,059 Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Janus Henderson Group PLC grew its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 52.8% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,880,199 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 995,059 shares during the period. Janus Henderson Group PLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $346,467,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Brighton Jones LLC increased its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 29.5% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 38,278 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,808,000 after purchasing an additional 8,710 shares during the period. Sivia Capital Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 52.2% in the 2nd quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 11,494 shares of the company’s stock worth $910,000 after purchasing an additional 3,941 shares during the period. Diversify Advisory Services LLC boosted its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 94.1% in the 2nd quarter. Diversify Advisory Services LLC now owns 32,256 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,590,000 after purchasing an additional 15,636 shares during the last quarter. Diversify Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 22.2% during the second quarter. Diversify Wealth Management LLC now owns 38,031 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,054,000 after buying an additional 6,897 shares during the period. Finally, MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 111.7% during the second quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 681,128 shares of the company’s stock worth $53,918,000 after buying an additional 359,356 shares during the period. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MRK has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $142.00 target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Wednesday, July 8th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $112.00 to $113.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 9th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $135.00 to $142.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, July 13th. Weiss Ratings downgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research note on Friday, May 15th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, July 20th. Thirteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $134.50.

Trending Headlines about Merck & Co., Inc.

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

• Positive Sentiment: Barclays raised its price target on Merck from $140 to $150 and maintained an “overweight” rating, implying meaningful potential upside from recent trading levels. Barclays raises Merck price target
• Positive Sentiment: Erste Group modestly increased its fiscal 2027 EPS forecast to $9.54 from $9.52, signaling slightly stronger expectations for Merck’s longer-term earnings power. Erste Group raises Merck EPS estimate
• Positive Sentiment: Merck declared a quarterly dividend of $0.85 per share, payable October 7 to shareholders of record September 15. The dividend supports the stock’s income appeal and represents an annualized yield of approximately 2.7%. Merck announces fourth-quarter dividend
• Positive Sentiment: A Merck-Wellcome joint venture is preparing doses of an experimental Ebola vaccine for clinical trials, providing a potential public-health and pipeline opportunity, although it is not an immediate earnings driver. Merck and Wellcome Ebola vaccine partnership
• Neutral Sentiment: Analysts expect second-quarter revenue of about $16.33 billion and a loss of $0.26 per share, with acquisition-related costs, Keytruda performance, and Gardasil demand likely to determine whether results beat or miss expectations. Merck second-quarter earnings preview
• Neutral Sentiment: Valuation analysis finds Merck attractive on discounted cash flow and cash-flow measures but more fairly valued based on earnings, suggesting further gains will require continued fundamental execution. Merck valuation analysis
• Negative Sentiment: Near-term uncertainty ahead of earnings—including acquisition costs and ongoing Gardasil challenges—may be weighing on sentiment despite expected strength from Keytruda. Merck earnings metrics preview

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Down 0.3%

Merck & Co., Inc. stock opened at $129.95 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $320.96 billion, a PE ratio of 36.61, a PEG ratio of 5.17 and a beta of 0.19. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12-month low of $77.53 and a 12-month high of $135.05. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $123.02 and its 200 day moving average is $118.37. The company has a quick ratio of 1.06, a current ratio of 1.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported ($1.28) EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($1.47) by $0.19. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 13.59% and a return on equity of 27.55%. The business had revenue of $16.29 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $15.85 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.22 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 4.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 2.74 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 7th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 15th will be given a dividend of $0.85 per share. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 15th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio is 95.77%.

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.