Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc. Cuts Holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc. cut its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 1.9% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 369,628 shares of the company’s stock after selling 7,016 shares during the period. Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $53,711,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in MRK. Eastern Bank grew its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.2% during the third quarter. Eastern Bank now owns 195,900 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,466,000 after purchasing an additional 4,140 shares during the period. Heartwood Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 3.4% during the 3rd quarter. Heartwood Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 13,927 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,024,000 after buying an additional 457 shares in the last quarter. Polaris Financial Partners acquired a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $66,000. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 1.5% during the 3rd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 12,270 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,783,000 after buying an additional 185 shares during the period. Finally, Stonebridge Financial Group LLC increased its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 1.7% in the 3rd quarter. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC now owns 8,894 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,292,000 after acquiring an additional 147 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Merck & Co., Inc.

In other Merck & Co., Inc. news, EVP Chirfi Guindo sold 15,000 shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $131.00, for a total transaction of $1,965,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 46,613 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,106,303. The trade was a 24.35% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP David Williams sold 52,847 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $128.77, for a total transaction of $6,805,108.19. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 31,716 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,084,069.32. This represents a 62.49% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last quarter, insiders sold 228,238 shares of company stock worth $29,977,783. 0.17% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have commented on MRK. Sanford C. Bernstein raised their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. Berenberg Bank raised their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $127.00 to $137.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, September 11th. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $120.00 price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Monday, July 6th. BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $142.00 to $170.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 20th. Finally, Daiwa Securities Group upgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $143.00 price objective for the company in a report on Wednesday, August 12th. Sixteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $146.36.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Down 2.8%

MRK stock traded down $4.05 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $140.25. 4,319,302 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 10,682,914. The company has a quick ratio of 1.10, a current ratio of 1.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $142.73 and its 200 day moving average price is $127.40. The stock has a market cap of $346.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 112.13, a P/E/G ratio of 6.28 and a beta of 0.21. Merck & Co., Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $82.01 and a fifty-two week high of $156.92.

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

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 7th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.85 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 15th. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.4%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 272.00%.

Merck & Co., Inc. Company Profile

Merck & Co, Inc is a global healthcare company that develops and markets prescription medicines, vaccines, and animal-health products. The company serves patients, healthcare providers, and customers in markets around the world, with research and commercial operations spanning multiple geographic regions.

Its pharmaceutical portfolio includes oncology, infectious-disease, cardiovascular, immunology, and other therapeutic areas. Key products include Keytruda, an oncology treatment; Gardasil, a human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine; Januvia and Janumet for type 2 diabetes; Bridion for anesthesia-related use; and Winrevair for pulmonary arterial hypertension.