Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. Purchases 5,369 Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 7.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 78,846 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 5,369 shares during the quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $8,299,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of MRK. Abound Wealth Management raised its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 6.8% in the 4th quarter. Abound Wealth Management now owns 1,554 shares of the company’s stock worth $164,000 after acquiring an additional 99 shares during the period. Pine Haven Investment Counsel Inc boosted its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Pine Haven Investment Counsel Inc now owns 14,137 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,488,000 after acquiring an additional 105 shares during the period. Lake Street Private Wealth LLC grew its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.1% in the fourth quarter. Lake Street Private Wealth LLC now owns 5,203 shares of the company’s stock valued at $548,000 after purchasing an additional 109 shares during the last quarter. One Charles Private Wealth Services LLC grew its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 3.3% in the third quarter. One Charles Private Wealth Services LLC now owns 3,464 shares of the company’s stock valued at $291,000 after purchasing an additional 111 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fragasso Financial Advisors Inc increased its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Fragasso Financial Advisors Inc now owns 11,502 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,211,000 after purchasing an additional 115 shares during the period. 76.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Merck & Co., Inc. Trading Up 0.1%

Merck & Co., Inc. stock opened at $119.77 on Monday. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $116.65 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $102.06. The company has a quick ratio of 1.30, a current ratio of 1.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89. The stock has a market cap of $296.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 0.27. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12 month low of $73.31 and a 12 month high of $125.14.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 3rd. The company reported $2.04 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.01 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $16.40 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.19 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 44.57% and a net margin of 28.08%.Merck & Co., Inc.’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.72 EPS. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.000-5.150 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS 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 dividend of $0.85 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 16th. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.8%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s payout ratio is currently 46.70%.

Key Headlines Impacting Merck & Co., Inc.

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

• Positive Sentiment: Merck announced a US$6.7B acquisition of Terns Pharmaceuticals to add TERN-701 (an investigational oral CML therapy) to its oncology/hematology pipeline—a clear move to build revenue and R&D options ahead of Keytruda’s planned 2028 exclusivity loss. Merck Targets Post Keytruda Future With US$6.7b Terns Acquisition
• Positive Sentiment: RBC reiterated an Outperform and kept a $142 price target after Merck’s Terns call, signaling sell‑side support for the strategy despite questions about the transaction premium. RBC Reiterates Merck (MRK) Outperform
• Positive Sentiment: Agilent won FDA approval for the PD‑L1 22C3 companion diagnostic in esophageal/GEJ carcinoma, which can help identify patients for Keytruda treatment—supportive for near‑term uptake in that indication. Agilent receives FDA approval for PD-L1 1HC 22C3 pharmDx
• Positive Sentiment: High-profile bullish commentary (e.g., Jim Cramer) and option/trade ideas targeting MRK indicate elevated investor interest and constructive conviction in Merck as a defensive large‑cap pharma. Jim Cramer on Merck & Co.
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst model tweaks are minor: Erste marginally raised FY2026 EPS estimates (from $5.12 to $5.13), reflecting limited near‑term changes to consensus earnings expectations. MarketBeat analyst update
• Neutral Sentiment: Coverage pieces note Merck has outperformed recently (stock up ~50% over six months); some articles offer tactical trade ideas (options/covered calls) that reflect market momentum rather than fundamental shifts. Merck Stock Soars 50% in 6 Months
• Negative Sentiment: Keytruda’s planned 2028 loss of exclusivity remains the central long‑term risk—analysts and articles stress patent cliff exposure and some weak vaccine sales, which temper valuation upside. Zacks: Merck Stock Soars 50% in 6 Months
• Negative Sentiment: The proposed Terns transaction may face rival interest and is the subject of a shareholder‑lawyer investigation (Kahn Swick & Foti), introducing deal execution, regulatory and legal risk that could delay or change terms. MSN: Merck’s Terns acquisition may face rival interest BusinessWire: KSF Investigation

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on MRK shares. Scotiabank boosted their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 4th. TD Cowen raised their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $100.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 20th. Bank of America lifted their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 15th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $150.00 price target for the company in a report on Friday, February 13th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $82.00 to $130.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 18th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have given a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $127.13.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Jennifer Zachary sold 121,573 shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the executive vice president directly owned 68,916 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,211,341.40. The trade was a 63.82% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Johannes Jacobus Oosthuizen sold 15,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $121.87, for a total transaction of $1,828,050.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 21,197 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,583,278.39. The trade was a 41.44% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 320,176 shares of company stock valued at $38,281,735. 0.09% of the stock is owned by insiders.

About Merck & Co., Inc.

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.