R.H. Dinel Investment Counsel Inc. Has $3.30 Million Stock Holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

R.H. Dinel Investment Counsel Inc. decreased its position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 29.9% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 31,365 shares of the company’s stock after selling 13,377 shares during the quarter. Merck & Co., Inc. makes up approximately 2.4% of R.H. Dinel Investment Counsel Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 15th largest holding. R.H. Dinel Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $3,301,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. DLD Asset Management LP raised its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 30.1% in the 3rd quarter. DLD Asset Management LP now owns 47,500,000 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,986,675,000 after acquiring an additional 11,000,000 shares during the period. Fisher Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.3% during the second quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 25,013,697 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,980,084,000 after acquiring an additional 567,900 shares during the period. Legal & General Group Plc grew its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 5.9% in the third quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 20,659,157 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,733,923,000 after purchasing an additional 1,156,112 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. grew its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 16.6% in the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 19,844,936 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,665,585,000 after purchasing an additional 2,821,766 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership increased its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 35.5% in the second quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 19,456,096 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,540,145,000 after purchasing an additional 5,094,088 shares during the period. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the company. Royal Bank Of Canada started coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Wednesday, February 25th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $142.00 price objective for the company. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $135.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 12th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $100.00 to $102.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, December 12th. Finally, Barclays began coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Friday, February 20th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $140.00 price objective on the stock. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $127.13.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock opened at $119.77 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $296.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 0.27. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $116.65 and its 200-day simple moving average is $102.06. Merck & Co., Inc. has a twelve month low of $73.31 and a twelve month high of $125.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 1.30 and a current ratio of 1.54.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 3rd. The company reported $2.04 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.01 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $16.40 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.19 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 28.08% and a return on equity of 44.57%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.72 earnings per share. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.000-5.150 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 7th. Investors of record on Monday, March 16th will be given a dividend of $0.85 per share. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 16th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 46.70%.

Key Merck & Co., Inc. News

Here are the key news stories impacting Merck & Co., Inc. this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Merck announced a US$6.7B acquisition of Terns Pharmaceuticals to add TERN-701 (an investigational oral CML therapy) to its oncology/hematology pipeline—a clear move to build revenue and R&D options ahead of Keytruda’s planned 2028 exclusivity loss. Merck Targets Post Keytruda Future With US$6.7b Terns Acquisition
• Positive Sentiment: RBC reiterated an Outperform and kept a $142 price target after Merck’s Terns call, signaling sell‑side support for the strategy despite questions about the transaction premium. RBC Reiterates Merck (MRK) Outperform
• Positive Sentiment: Agilent won FDA approval for the PD‑L1 22C3 companion diagnostic in esophageal/GEJ carcinoma, which can help identify patients for Keytruda treatment—supportive for near‑term uptake in that indication. Agilent receives FDA approval for PD-L1 1HC 22C3 pharmDx
• Positive Sentiment: High-profile bullish commentary (e.g., Jim Cramer) and option/trade ideas targeting MRK indicate elevated investor interest and constructive conviction in Merck as a defensive large‑cap pharma. Jim Cramer on Merck & Co.
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst model tweaks are minor: Erste marginally raised FY2026 EPS estimates (from $5.12 to $5.13), reflecting limited near‑term changes to consensus earnings expectations. MarketBeat analyst update
• Neutral Sentiment: Coverage pieces note Merck has outperformed recently (stock up ~50% over six months); some articles offer tactical trade ideas (options/covered calls) that reflect market momentum rather than fundamental shifts. Merck Stock Soars 50% in 6 Months
• Negative Sentiment: Keytruda’s planned 2028 loss of exclusivity remains the central long‑term risk—analysts and articles stress patent cliff exposure and some weak vaccine sales, which temper valuation upside. Zacks: Merck Stock Soars 50% in 6 Months
• Negative Sentiment: The proposed Terns transaction may face rival interest and is the subject of a shareholder‑lawyer investigation (Kahn Swick & Foti), introducing deal execution, regulatory and legal risk that could delay or change terms. MSN: Merck’s Terns acquisition may face rival interest BusinessWire: KSF Investigation

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

In other Merck & Co., Inc. news, CEO Robert M. Davis sold 47,434 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $118.04, for a total transaction of $5,599,109.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 443,602 shares in the company, valued at $52,362,780.08. This represents a 9.66% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Richard R. Deluca sold 37,685 shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock in a transaction on Friday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $120.92, for a total value of $4,556,870.20. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 160,174 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $19,368,240.08. The trade was a 19.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 320,176 shares of company stock worth $38,281,735 over the last three months. 0.09% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.