Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) Price Target Raised to $180.00

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) had its price objective boosted by Wolfe Research from $155.00 to $180.00 in a research note published on Tuesday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have an outperform rating on the stock.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports on the company. Morgan Stanley upgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $116.00 to $179.00 in a report on Thursday, August 20th. UBS Group upped their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $145.00 to $175.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 20th. Daiwa Securities Group upgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $143.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, August 12th. Guggenheim raised their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $145.00 to $146.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $135.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, July 13th. Fifteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $147.60.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Down 2.3%

Shares of NYSE MRK opened at $149.64 on Tuesday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 1 year low of $77.58 and a 1 year high of $156.92. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $131.10 and its 200 day moving average price is $122.23. The firm has a market cap of $369.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 119.71, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.42 and a beta of 0.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a current ratio of 1.32.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The company reported ($0.13) EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.26) by $0.13. The firm had revenue of $16.61 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.37 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 4.77% and a return on equity of 16.73%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.13 EPS. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.660-2.760 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 2.76 earnings per share for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 7th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.85 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 15th. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.3%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s payout ratio is currently 272.00%.

Insider Activity at Merck & Co., Inc.

In related news, EVP Chirfi Guindo sold 10,000 shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $135.00, for a total value of $1,350,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 36,613 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,942,755. This trade represents a 21.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP David R. Maraldo sold 18,706 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $128.72, for a total value of $2,407,836.32. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 18,212 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,344,248.64. This trade represents a 50.67% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last three months, insiders sold 228,238 shares of company stock worth $29,977,783. 0.17% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Merck & Co., Inc.

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 29.5% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 38,278 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,808,000 after purchasing an additional 8,710 shares during the period. Sivia Capital Partners LLC increased its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 52.2% in the 2nd quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 11,494 shares of the company’s stock valued at $910,000 after purchasing an additional 3,941 shares in the last quarter. Diversify Advisory Services LLC raised its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 94.1% in the second quarter. Diversify Advisory Services LLC now owns 32,256 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,590,000 after purchasing an additional 15,636 shares during the period. Diversify Wealth Management LLC raised its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 22.2% in the second quarter. Diversify Wealth Management LLC now owns 38,031 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,054,000 after purchasing an additional 6,897 shares during the period. Finally, MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 111.7% during the second quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 681,128 shares of the company’s stock worth $53,918,000 after purchasing an additional 359,356 shares in the last quarter. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.