Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV Increases Stock Holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV grew its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 16.4% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 716,051 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 101,040 shares during the quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $60,098,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. MFA Wealth Services boosted its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 3.0% in the 3rd quarter. MFA Wealth Services now owns 5,701 shares of the company’s stock valued at $478,000 after buying an additional 168 shares in the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. raised its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 1.9% during the 3rd quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 693,898 shares of the company’s stock worth $57,923,000 after acquiring an additional 12,770 shares in the last quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC raised its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 3.0% during the 3rd quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC now owns 60,584 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,085,000 after acquiring an additional 1,764 shares in the last quarter. L2 Asset Management LLC lifted its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 121.8% in the third quarter. L2 Asset Management LLC now owns 16,047 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,347,000 after acquiring an additional 8,812 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Laraway Financial Advisors Inc lifted its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 9.6% in the third quarter. Laraway Financial Advisors Inc now owns 3,443 shares of the company’s stock valued at $289,000 after acquiring an additional 301 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Merck & Co., Inc.

In other Merck & Co., Inc. news, EVP Jennifer Zachary sold 121,573 shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $119.15, for a total value of $14,485,422.95. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 68,916 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,211,341.40. This trade represents a 63.82% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Richard R. Deluca sold 37,685 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 160,174 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,368,240.08. The trade was a 19.05% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 320,176 shares of company stock worth $38,281,735 over the last three months. 0.09% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Merck & Co., Inc. Trading Down 0.2%

Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock opened at $115.35 on Tuesday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 1 year low of $73.31 and a 1 year 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. The company has a market capitalization of $285.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.84, a PEG ratio of 2.24 and a beta of 0.27. The company’s fifty day moving average is $115.42 and its two-hundred day moving average is $100.02.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 3rd. The company reported $2.04 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.01 by $0.03. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 28.08% and a return on equity of 44.57%. The company had revenue of $16.40 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.19 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.72 earnings per share. Merck & Co., Inc.’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. Analysts forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 7th. Investors of record on Monday, March 16th will be given a $0.85 dividend. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.9%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 16th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s payout ratio is 46.70%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MRK has been the topic of several research reports. BMO Capital Markets raised Merck & Co., Inc. from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $82.00 to $130.00 in a report on Thursday, December 18th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $135.00 to $150.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, March 12th. Royal Bank Of Canada initiated coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Wednesday, February 25th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $142.00 target price for the company. Zacks Research downgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Friday, January 9th. Finally, Bank of America lifted their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 15th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $126.81.

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.