Pallas Capital Advisors LLC Lowers Stock Holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Pallas Capital Advisors LLC cut its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 7.4% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 62,572 shares of the company’s stock after selling 4,970 shares during the period. Pallas Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $8,041,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Panoramic Capital Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 23.2% during the second quarter. Panoramic Capital Partners LLC now owns 2,436 shares of the company’s stock worth $313,000 after purchasing an additional 459 shares during the last quarter. Paragon Financial Partners Inc. grew its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 11.5% in the 2nd quarter. Paragon Financial Partners Inc. now owns 3,439 shares of the company’s stock valued at $448,000 after buying an additional 356 shares during the last quarter. Perigon Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 1.4% in the 2nd quarter. Perigon Wealth Management LLC now owns 81,333 shares of the company’s stock valued at $10,451,000 after buying an additional 1,124 shares during the period. Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI raised its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 7.9% during the 2nd quarter. Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI now owns 215,121 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,643,000 after buying an additional 15,765 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Phillips Wealth Planners LLC raised its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 28.6% during the 2nd quarter. Phillips Wealth Planners LLC now owns 6,685 shares of the company’s stock worth $861,000 after buying an additional 1,487 shares during the last quarter. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Merck & Co., Inc. News Summary

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.

Insider Activity at Merck & Co., Inc.

In related news, EVP David R. Maraldo sold 18,706 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $128.72, for a total transaction of $2,407,836.32. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 18,212 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,344,248.64. This trade represents a 50.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Chirfi Guindo sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $135.00, for a total value of $1,350,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 36,613 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,942,755. This trade represents a 21.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 228,238 shares of company stock worth $29,977,783 over the last three months. Company insiders own 0.17% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently weighed in on MRK shares. Argus lifted their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $145.00 to $170.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $145.00 to $150.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 8th. Scotiabank increased their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $136.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 30th. Morgan Stanley raised Merck & Co., Inc. from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price target for the company from $116.00 to $179.00 in a report on Thursday, August 20th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $120.00 price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Monday, July 6th. Fifteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $147.60.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

Shares of MRK opened at $156.54 on Wednesday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12-month low of $77.58 and a 12-month high of $156.92. The stock has a market cap of $386.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 125.23, a PEG ratio of 6.32 and a beta of 0.19. The company has a current ratio of 1.32, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22. The company has a 50-day moving average of $129.64 and a two-hundred day moving average of $121.80.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.37 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 16.73% and a net margin of 4.77%.The company’s quarterly revenue was up 5.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.13 EPS. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.660-2.760 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 2.76 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

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

Merck & Co., Inc. 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.