New England Research & Management Inc. Increases Stock Position in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

New England Research & Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 35.4% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 29,238 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 7,642 shares during the period. Merck & Co., Inc. accounts for about 1.3% of New England Research & Management Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 19th biggest holding. New England Research & Management Inc.’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $3,078,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. DLD Asset Management LP acquired a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the second quarter worth $2,889,340,000. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the second quarter valued at $2,858,570,000. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership boosted its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 35.5% during the 2nd 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 in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 9.4% during the 2nd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 53,865,466 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,263,991,000 after purchasing an additional 4,636,183 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 192.7% during the 3rd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 5,496,664 shares of the company’s stock worth $461,335,000 after purchasing an additional 3,618,532 shares during the period. 76.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the stock. TD Cowen increased their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $100.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 20th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Citigroup upped their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $120.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $135.00 to $150.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 12th. Finally, Scotiabank lifted their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, December 4th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $127.13.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:MRK opened at $114.17 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $282.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.68, a P/E/G ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 0.27. The company has a quick ratio of 1.30, a current ratio of 1.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 52 week low of $73.31 and a 52 week high of $125.14. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $115.81 and a 200-day simple moving average of $100.75.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 3rd. The company reported $2.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.01 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $16.40 billion for 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 quarterly revenue was up 5.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period 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. Equities research analysts forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 7th. Investors of record on Monday, March 16th will be issued a dividend of $0.85 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 16th. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.0%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s payout ratio is presently 46.70%.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Richard R. Deluca sold 37,685 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $120.92, for a total transaction of $4,556,870.20. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 160,174 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $19,368,240.08. This represents a 19.05% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Johannes Jacobus Oosthuizen sold 15,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $121.87, for a total value of $1,828,050.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider 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 disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 320,176 shares of company stock worth $38,281,735 in the last quarter. Insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

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.