Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK Shares Sold by Shell Asset Management Co.

Shell Asset Management Co. trimmed its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 52.0% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 39,209 shares of the company’s stock after selling 42,465 shares during the quarter. Shell Asset Management Co.’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $3,291,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Darwin Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 237.4% in the third quarter. Darwin Wealth Management LLC now owns 307 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 216 shares during the last quarter. Kilter Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 2nd quarter worth about $27,000. Bare Financial Services Inc lifted its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 51.9% in the 2nd quarter. Bare Financial Services Inc now owns 366 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares during the last quarter. Barnes Dennig Private Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 302.3% during the 3rd quarter. Barnes Dennig Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 354 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 266 shares during the period. Finally, Evolution Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 2nd quarter valued at about $31,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Up 1.8%

MRK opened at $121.39 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 1.44 and a current ratio of 1.66. The company has a market capitalization of $301.29 billion, a PE ratio of 16.67, a P/E/G ratio of 2.27 and a beta of 0.28. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $108.35 and its 200-day moving average is $94.45. Merck & Co., Inc. has a one year low of $73.31 and a one year high of $123.33.

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

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 7th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 16th will be paid a $0.85 dividend. 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 currently 46.70%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Merck & Co., Inc. news, CMO Chirfi Guindo sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $118.41, for a total value of $1,184,100.00. Following the transaction, the chief marketing officer owned 70,615 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,361,522.15. This represents a 12.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Johannes Jacobus Oosthuizen sold 15,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $121.87, for a total value of $1,828,050.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 21,197 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,583,278.39. This represents a 41.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last three months, insiders sold 320,176 shares of company stock worth $38,281,735. Company insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Wolfe Research raised Merck & Co., Inc. from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $135.00 price target on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 8th. Scotiabank lifted their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 4th. BMO Capital Markets upgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $82.00 to $130.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 18th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $92.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 2nd. Finally, Zacks Research cut shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Friday, January 9th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $123.71.

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.