Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) Shares Acquired Rep. Josh Gottheimer

Representative Josh Gottheimer (Democratic-New Jersey) recently bought shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK). In a filing disclosed on March 16th, the Representative disclosed that they had bought between $1,001 and $15,000 in Merck & Co., Inc. stock on February 4th. The trade occurred in the Representative’s “MORGAN STANLEY – SELECT UMA ACCOUNT # 1” account.

Representative Josh Gottheimer also recently made the following trade(s):

• Sold $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) on 2/27/2026.
• Purchased $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of Infineon Technologies (OTCMKTS:IFNNY) on 2/27/2026.
• Purchased $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of Federal Signal (NYSE:FSS) on 2/26/2026.
• Sold $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of Intuit (NASDAQ:INTU) on 2/20/2026.
• Sold $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of Visa (NYSE:V) on 2/18/2026.
• Sold $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of Carvana (NYSE:CVNA) on 2/18/2026.
• Purchased $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of GE Vernova (NYSE:GEV) on 2/5/2026.
• Purchased $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of Cummins (NYSE:CMI) on 2/5/2026.
• Purchased $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) on 2/5/2026.
• Purchased $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of Exxon Mobil (NYSE:XOM) on 2/4/2026.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

Shares of MRK stock opened at $116.26 on Wednesday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a twelve month low of $73.31 and a twelve month high of $125.14. The company has a current ratio of 1.54, a quick ratio of 1.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $116.10 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $101.32. The stock has a market capitalization of $287.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.97, a P/E/G ratio of 2.24 and a beta of 0.27.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last released its quarterly earnings data 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 44.57% and a net margin of 28.08%.The firm had revenue of $16.40 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.19 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.72 earnings per share. The firm’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, analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

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

Institutional Trading of Merck & Co., Inc.

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter worth about $3,997,933,000. DLD Asset Management LP purchased a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $2,889,340,000. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 14.8% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 86,435,458 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,098,196,000 after purchasing an additional 11,156,354 shares in the last quarter. Cardano Risk Management B.V. purchased a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,012,530,000. Finally, Jennison Associates LLC acquired a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $585,192,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO Caroline Litchfield sold 41,997 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $119.61, for a total transaction of $5,023,261.17. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 90,192 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,787,865.12. The trade was a 31.77% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CMO Chirfi Guindo sold 20,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $121.88, for a total value of $2,437,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief marketing officer owned 80,615 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,825,356.20. This trade represents a 19.88% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 320,176 shares of company stock valued at $38,281,735. Corporate insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on MRK. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $100.00 to $102.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, December 12th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $135.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 12th. Wolfe Research raised Merck & Co., Inc. from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $135.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $120.00 to $125.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, March 20th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Merck & Co., Inc. presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $127.13.

Key Stories Impacting Merck & Co., Inc.

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

• Positive Sentiment: Merck agreed to buy Terns Pharmaceuticals for $53.00 per share in cash, valuing the deal at roughly $6.7 billion (about $5.7B net of cash). The acquisition adds TERN-701, an oral allosteric BCR::ABL1 inhibitor in Phase 1/2 for CML, bolstering Merck’s oncology pipeline as Keytruda faces patent pressure. Merck to Acquire Terns Pharmaceuticals, Inc., Expanding Its Hematology Pipeline With TERN-701, a Novel Candidate for Chronic Myeloid Leukemia (CML)
• Positive Sentiment: Wider media coverage (Reuters/WSJ/Bloomberg) frames the Terns deal as a strategic bolt-on to mitigate Keytruda patent erosion — positive for long-term revenue visibility if development succeeds. This narrative is supporting investor appetite. Merck boosts cancer portfolio with $6.7 billion buyout of Terns Pharma
• Positive Sentiment: Broker movement: Citi raised its price target on MRK to $125 from $120 (while keeping a Neutral rating), which can support the stock’s near-term tone. Citi Raises its Price Target on Merck & Co. (MRK) to $125 from $120
• Neutral Sentiment: Merck announced a multi‑year research collaboration with Quotient Therapeutics to find IBD drug targets using somatic genomics (deal includes upfront payment and milestone potential). This expands R&D optionality but is early-stage and will take time to move the needle. Quotient Therapeutics Announces Collaboration with Merck to Discover Novel Drug Targets in Inflammatory Bowel Disease Using Somatic Genomics Platform Technology
• Negative Sentiment: Key risk remains: Keytruda’s looming patent losses continue to pressure Merck’s growth outlook. The Terns buy addresses pipeline gaps but increases near‑term deal spend and execution risk; investors will watch integration, trial readouts, and capital allocation closely. Merck Reaches Nearly $6 Billion Deal for Cancer Biotech Terns

About Representative Gottheimer

Josh Gottheimer (Democratic Party) is a member of the U.S. House, representing New Jersey’s 5th Congressional District. He assumed office on January 3, 2017. His current term ends on January 3, 2027.

Gottheimer (Democratic Party) is running for re-election to the U.S. House to represent New Jersey’s 5th Congressional District. He declared candidacy for the 2026 election.

Gottheimer is also running for election for Governor of New Jersey. He declared candidacy for the Democratic primary scheduled on June 10, 2025.

Gottheimer attended the University of Pennsylvania for his undergraduate degree. He became a Thouron Fellow at Oxford and attended Harvard Law School. Gottheimer worked as a speech writer under former President Bill Clinton (D), assisting with two State of the Union addresses, among other projects. Before running for Congress, he worked for Microsoft as a general manager for corporate strategy.

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.