6,037 Shares in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK Bought by SHP Wealth Management

SHP Wealth Management acquired a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund acquired 6,037 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $636,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Kingdom Financial Group LLC. bought a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Abound Financial LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Prosperity Bancshares Inc bought a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $26,000. United Financial Planning Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Finally, High Note Wealth LLC increased its position 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 purchasing an additional 109 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently commented on MRK shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, April 6th. Citigroup assumed coverage on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $125.00 price target for the company. UBS Group increased their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $130.00 to $145.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, April 13th. Weiss Ratings downgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Friday, May 15th. Finally, 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 report on Friday, May 1st. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $128.18.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

Merck & Co., Inc. stock opened at $114.04 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $115.94 and its 200 day moving average is $113.60. Merck & Co., Inc. has a one year low of $76.66 and a one year high of $125.14. The firm has a market cap of $281.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.12, a P/E/G ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 0.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.30 and a quick ratio of 1.06.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported ($1.28) earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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 business had revenue of $16.29 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.85 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.22 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.040-5.160 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 5.17 EPS for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 8th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 15th will be paid a $0.85 dividend. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis 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.