Smith Salley Wealth Management Raises Stock Holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Smith Salley Wealth Management boosted its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 14.2% in the first quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 43,935 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 5,469 shares during the quarter. Smith Salley Wealth Management’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $5,285,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter valued at about $3,997,933,000. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 14.8% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 86,435,458 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,098,196,000 after purchasing an additional 11,156,354 shares during the period. DLD Asset Management LP boosted its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 30.1% during the third quarter. DLD Asset Management LP now owns 47,500,000 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,986,675,000 after purchasing an additional 11,000,000 shares during the period. Cardano Risk Management B.V. bought a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter worth about $1,012,530,000. Finally, Jennison Associates LLC bought a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter worth about $585,192,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Trading Up 0.1%

Shares of MRK opened at $114.04 on Monday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 1-year low of $76.66 and a 1-year high of $125.14. The company has a current ratio of 1.30, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $115.94 and its 200-day moving average price is $113.68. The firm has a market capitalization of $281.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.12, a PEG ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 0.21.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported ($1.28) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($1.47) by $0.19. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 13.59% and a return on equity of 27.55%. The company had revenue of $16.29 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.85 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.22 earnings per share. Merck & Co., Inc.’s revenue was up 4.9% on a year-over-year basis. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.040-5.160 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 5.17 EPS for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 8th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 15th will be given a $0.85 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 15th. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.0%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio is currently 95.77%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on MRK. UBS Group boosted their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $130.00 to $145.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, April 13th. Weiss Ratings cut Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Friday, May 15th. Citigroup started coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $125.00 price objective on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $150.00 to $145.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, April 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $128.18.

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.