Groupama Asset Managment Buys 49,541 Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Groupama Asset Managment increased its position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 6.3% in the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 832,605 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 49,541 shares during the period. Groupama Asset Managment’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $69,881,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Darwin Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 237.4% in the third quarter. Darwin Wealth Management LLC now owns 307 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 216 shares during the period. Kilter Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 2nd quarter valued at about $27,000. Bare Financial Services Inc increased its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 51.9% during the 2nd quarter. Bare Financial Services Inc now owns 366 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares during the last quarter. Barnes Dennig Private Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 302.3% during the 3rd quarter. Barnes Dennig Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 354 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 266 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Evolution Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $31,000. Institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Merck & Co., Inc. news, EVP Jennifer Zachary sold 121,573 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $119.15, for a total transaction of $14,485,422.95. Following the sale, 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 legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Johannes Jacobus Oosthuizen sold 15,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $121.87, for a total value of $1,828,050.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 21,197 shares in the company, valued at $2,583,278.39. The trade was a 41.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 320,176 shares of company stock worth $38,281,735 in the last three months. 0.13% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

NYSE MRK opened at $114.42 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 1.54, a quick ratio of 1.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12 month low of $73.31 and a 12 month high of $125.14. The stock has a market cap of $282.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.72, a PEG ratio of 2.24 and a beta of 0.27. The company’s 50 day moving average is $115.67 and its two-hundred day moving average is $100.34.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 3rd. The company reported $2.04 earnings per share 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 analyst estimates of $16.19 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 28.08% and a return on equity of 44.57%. The company’s revenue was up 5.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.72 earnings per share. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.000-5.150 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared 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 3.0%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 16th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio is presently 46.70%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently issued reports on MRK shares. Scotiabank boosted their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 4th. Wolfe Research upgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $135.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $105.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 7th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $150.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Finally, Zacks Research cut Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Friday, January 9th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have given a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $126.81.

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.