Guggenheim Issues Positive Forecast for Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) Stock Price

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) had its target price boosted by Guggenheim from $122.00 to $140.00 in a research report released on Friday morning,Benzinga reports. Guggenheim currently has a buy rating on the stock.

A number of other brokerages have also recently issued reports on MRK. Wolfe Research upgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $135.00 price objective for the company in a report on Thursday, January 8th. TD Cowen upped their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $100.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 20th. Zacks Research downgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Friday, January 9th. Scotiabank boosted their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, December 4th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their price target for the company from $82.00 to $130.00 in a report on Thursday, December 18th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $119.53.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Up 1.8%

MRK opened at $121.92 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $302.61 billion, a PE ratio of 16.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.23 and a beta of 0.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 1.66 and a quick ratio of 1.44. Merck & Co., Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $73.31 and a fifty-two week high of $122.66. The business has a 50-day moving average of $106.58 and a 200-day moving average of $93.15.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 3rd. The company reported $2.04 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.01 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $16.40 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.19 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 45.22% and a net margin of 28.08%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 5.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.72 EPS. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.000-5.150 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 7th. Investors of record on Monday, March 16th will be issued a dividend of $0.85 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 16th. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.8%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s payout ratio is 46.70%.

Insider Activity at Merck & Co., Inc.

In other news, VP Dean Y. Li sold 15,087 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $118.77, for a total transaction of $1,791,882.99. Following the sale, the vice president directly owned 102,270 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,146,607.90. The trade was a 12.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CMO Chirfi Guindo sold 20,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $121.88, for a total transaction of $2,437,600.00. Following the sale, the chief marketing officer directly owned 80,615 shares in the company, valued at $9,825,356.20. The trade was a 19.88% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 188,603 shares of company stock valued at $22,612,212. 0.13% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Merck & Co., Inc.

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of MRK. Chemung Canal Trust Co. grew its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 21.1% during the third quarter. Chemung Canal Trust Co. now owns 76,338 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,407,000 after purchasing an additional 13,285 shares in the last quarter. First Pacific Financial lifted its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 14.7% during the third quarter. First Pacific Financial now owns 47,555 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,991,000 after purchasing an additional 6,082 shares during the last quarter. Diversified Trust Co grew its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 9.6% in the 3rd quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 207,838 shares of the company’s stock worth $17,444,000 after buying an additional 18,187 shares in the last quarter. Caxton Associates LLP increased its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 23.3% in the 2nd quarter. Caxton Associates LLP now owns 39,421 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,121,000 after buying an additional 7,458 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Amplius Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 117.4% in the 2nd quarter. Amplius Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 6,165 shares of the company’s stock worth $488,000 after buying an additional 3,329 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

More Merck & Co., Inc. News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Q4 results topped estimates (EPS and revenue) and management set FY‑2026 EPS guidance of $5.00–$5.15 while citing growth drivers such as Keytruda, Animal Health and new drug launches — a near-term earnings beat that supports upside. Earnings Beat
• Positive Sentiment: Guggenheim raised its price target from $122 to $140 and kept a Buy rating, giving analysts’ support to the rally and indicating ~15% further upside from recent levels. Guggenheim PT Raise
• Positive Sentiment: Other broker notes are bullish — Citigroup and Scotiabank published favorable outlooks/target increases highlighting execution and price appreciation potential. Citigroup Forecast Scotiabank Lift
• Neutral Sentiment: Zacks flags a “subdued” 2026 outlook driven by acquisition-related charges, which mutes the beat; but it still points to Keytruda, Animal Health and new launches as the primary growth levers — a mixed read on near-term margin/earnings progression. Zacks Analysis
• Negative Sentiment: Significant insider selling this week: CEO Robert M. Davis sold ~47,434 shares, CFO Caroline Litchfield ~41,997 shares, EVP Richard Deluca ~37,685 shares, CMO Chirfi Guindo ~20,000 and multiple other senior executives also trimmed positions — large, coordinated filings that may weigh on sentiment despite corporate explanations (e.g., diversification or tax/planned sales). SEC filings: CEO Form 4 CFO Form 4 EVP Form 4

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.