Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK Stock Position Raised by Integrated Investment Consultants LLC

Integrated Investment Consultants LLC increased its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 53.9% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 28,816 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 10,087 shares during the quarter. Integrated Investment Consultants LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $3,033,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. United Financial Planning Group LLC purchased a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 3rd quarter worth about $31,000. High Note Wealth LLC raised its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 58.9% during the 4th quarter. High Note Wealth LLC now owns 294 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 109 shares during the period. Tucker Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter valued at about $34,000. Wealth Watch Advisors INC purchased a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the third quarter valued at about $34,000. Finally, Dunhill Financial LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 83.0% in the third quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 419 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 190 shares during the period. 76.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently weighed in on MRK. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, April 6th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research report on Friday. Citigroup assumed coverage on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $125.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $150.00 to $145.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 1st. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Merck & Co., Inc. presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $128.18.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

Shares of MRK opened at $111.36 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $275.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.37, a P/E/G ratio of 2.51 and a beta of 0.18. Merck & Co., Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $74.37 and a fifty-two week high of $125.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.30 and a quick ratio of 1.06. The business’s 50-day moving average is $116.00 and its 200-day moving average is $109.36.

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 the consensus estimate of ($1.47) by $0.19. The business had revenue of $16.29 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $15.85 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 13.59% and a return on equity of 27.55%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 4.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.22 earnings per share. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.040-5.160 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 5.16 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.