Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK Shares Sold by Russell Investments Group Ltd.

Russell Investments Group Ltd. cut its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 6.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 3,211,875 shares of the company’s stock after selling 214,818 shares during the period. Russell Investments Group Ltd. owned about 0.13% of Merck & Co., Inc. worth $338,652,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. Kingdom Financial Group LLC. purchased a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Abound Financial LLC purchased a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $26,000. United Financial Planning Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the third quarter worth $31,000. High Note Wealth LLC grew its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 58.9% in the fourth quarter. High Note Wealth LLC now owns 294 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 109 shares in the last quarter. Finally, IFC & Insurance Marketing Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter worth $31,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on MRK. Zacks Research upgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 17th. Wall Street Zen raised Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, June 6th. Weiss Ratings downgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Friday, May 15th. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $142.00 price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Monday, March 30th. Finally, Citigroup assumed coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $125.00 price objective for the company. 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 stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $128.18.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

Shares of MRK opened at $115.10 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $284.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.42, a PEG ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 0.21. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $116.32 and its 200-day simple moving average is $113.46. Merck & Co., Inc. has a twelve month low of $76.66 and a twelve month 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.

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

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

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

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.