Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK Stock Bought by Patton Albertson Miller Group LLC

Patton Albertson Miller Group LLC increased its position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 17.3% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 46,821 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 6,898 shares during the period. Patton Albertson Miller Group LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $6,804,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in MRK. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 23.8% during the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 15,456,039 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,858,938,000 after purchasing an additional 2,969,856 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE grew its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 10.5% in the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 30,774,221 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,701,831,000 after purchasing an additional 2,919,780 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 263.7% in the 2nd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 2,702,992 shares of the company’s stock valued at $347,334,000 after purchasing an additional 1,959,778 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.3% during the 2nd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 86,249,283 shares of the company’s stock valued at $11,083,033,000 after purchasing an additional 1,934,312 shares in the last quarter. Finally, SEB Asset Management AB bought a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 1st quarter valued at $197,550,000. 76.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Key Stories Impacting Merck & Co., Inc.

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

• Positive Sentiment: Merck and partner Daiichi Sankyo reported positive Phase 3 results for sacituzumab tirumotecan (Sac-TMT) in certain patients with advanced or recurrent endometrial cancer. The treatment reduced the risk of death by 32% and the risk of disease progression or death by 41% versus chemotherapy; median overall survival was 19 months compared with 12.1 months. An FDA decision is expected by June 2027. Sac-TMT Phase 3 results
• Positive Sentiment: KEYTRUDA monotherapy reduced the risk of disease progression or death by 43% in a specified group of patients with mismatch repair-deficient endometrial cancer, reinforcing the drug’s oncology franchise and potential for additional indications. KEYTRUDA endometrial cancer results
• Positive Sentiment: Barclays raised its MRK price target to $180 from $150 and maintained an overweight rating. Another valuation update lifted fair value to $159.76 from $155.68, citing Merck’s oncology pipeline and cancer-vaccine partnership. Barclays price-target increase
• Neutral Sentiment: Merck and Moderna’s personalized melanoma vaccine reduced recurrence or death by 42% when added to KEYTRUDA in a Phase 3 trial. However, the result was below some elevated investor expectations, and overall-survival data remain immature. Merck’s October 29 earnings call may provide details on regulatory filings, launch economics and the vaccine’s role in offsetting future Keytruda losses.
• Negative Sentiment: Investors remain focused on Keytruda’s compound-patent expiration in December 2028. Upcoming results must show that newer products—including Winrevair, Keytruda QLEX and other pipeline assets—can support management’s “shallow dip” outlook.
• Negative Sentiment: New U.S. Treasury restrictions on certain U.S. collaborations and investments involving Chinese biotech companies could limit Merck’s access to partnerships, research and potential cancer-drug candidates from China. China biotech restrictions and Merck

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:MRK opened at $140.36 on Tuesday. 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 stock has a market cap of $346.28 billion, a PE ratio of 112.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.74 and a beta of 0.21. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $146.69 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $125.84. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 1-year low of $82.01 and a 1-year high of $156.92.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The company reported ($0.13) EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 company had revenue of $16.61 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.37 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.13 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.1% on a year-over-year basis. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.660-2.760 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 2.64 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, October 7th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 15th were paid a $0.85 dividend. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.4%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 15th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s payout ratio is presently 272.00%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP David Williams sold 52,847 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $128.77, for a total transaction of $6,805,108.19. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 31,716 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,084,069.32. This trade represents a 62.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Richard Deluca sold 20,784 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $130.43, for a total value of $2,710,857.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 134,703 shares in the company, valued at approximately $17,569,312.29. This represents a 13.37% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 228,238 shares of company stock valued at $29,977,783 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.17% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MRK has been the topic of several research reports. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, October 3rd. Wolfe Research upped their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $155.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 25th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $152.00 to $175.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 20th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $150.00 to $170.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, September 4th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 4th. Seventeen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $153.12.

About Merck & Co., Inc.

Merck & Co, Inc is a global healthcare company that develops, manufactures and markets prescription medicines, vaccines and animal-health products. Its pharmaceutical business focuses on oncology, infectious diseases, cardiology, immunology and other areas of significant medical need. The company serves patients, healthcare providers and institutions in markets worldwide.

Merck’s principal products include Keytruda, an immunotherapy used to treat a range of cancers; Gardasil and Gardasil 9, vaccines that help protect against human papillomavirus; and Januvia and Janumet, medicines used to manage type 2 diabetes.