Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK Shares Sold by Sterling Capital Management LLC

Sterling Capital Management LLC trimmed its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 39.5% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 65,526 shares of the company’s stock after selling 42,781 shares during the quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $9,522,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. BlackRock Inc. raised its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.5% in the second quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 226,999,837 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,169,479,000 after buying an additional 1,073,507 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.9% in the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 120,413,256 shares of the company’s stock worth $15,573,754,000 after buying an additional 1,087,583 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.3% during the second quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 86,249,283 shares of the company’s stock valued at $11,083,033,000 after buying an additional 1,934,312 shares during the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE grew its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 10.5% during the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 30,774,221 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,701,831,000 after buying an additional 2,919,780 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 23.8% during the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 15,456,039 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,858,938,000 after buying an additional 2,969,856 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: Merck and Moderna reported positive Phase 3 INTerpath-001 results for the personalized melanoma vaccine, intismeran, combined with Keytruda. The treatment reduced the risk of recurrence or death by 42% and also improved distant metastasis-free survival, supporting the long-term potential of the partnership’s oncology pipeline. Doctors call Moderna and Merck cancer vaccine data a major advancement
• Positive Sentiment: The European Commission approved Keytruda plus Padcev as a perioperative treatment for resectable muscle-invasive bladder cancer, regardless of patients’ cisplatin eligibility. The broader label expands the addressable market and represents the EU’s first approval of a PD-1 inhibitor combined with an antibody-drug conjugate in this setting. Merck wins EU approval for Keytruda plus Padcev
• Neutral Sentiment: Despite strong clinical results, the vaccine announcement triggered a “sell-the-news” reaction. The data largely met elevated Wall Street expectations after an earlier leak, limiting the immediate upside for MRK even though oncologists viewed the results as an important treatment advance. Merck and Moderna shares fall on cancer vaccine results
• Negative Sentiment: Investors remain concerned about valuation and Merck’s future revenue concentration in Keytruda ahead of its patent cliff. Analysts have also characterized the recent rally as leaving limited margin of safety, increasing the risk of profit-taking when news is merely in line with expectations. Merck rally leaves little margin of safety
• Negative Sentiment: Erste Group Bank reduced its FY2026 EPS estimate to $2.63 from $2.73 and its FY2027 estimate to $9.38 from $9.47. Separate previews also anticipate a year-over-year decline in quarterly earnings, adding near-term pressure to the shares. Merck earnings preview

Insider Transactions at Merck & Co., Inc.

In related news, EVP David Williams sold 52,847 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $128.77, for a total transaction of $6,805,108.19. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 31,716 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,084,069.32. This represents a 62.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Jennifer Zachary sold 80,315 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $133.46, for a total value of $10,718,839.90. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 45,509 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,073,631.14. This represents a 63.83% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 228,238 shares of company stock worth $29,977,783. Company insiders own 0.17% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

Merck & Co., Inc. stock traded down $1.99 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $145.25. 8,379,092 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 9,663,986. The firm has a market capitalization of $358.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 116.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.83 and a beta of 0.21. The business has a 50 day moving average of $146.98 and a two-hundred day moving average of $130.17. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12 month low of $82.01 and a 12 month high of $156.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22, a current ratio of 1.32 and a quick ratio of 1.10.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The company reported ($0.13) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.26) by $0.13. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 4.77% and a return on equity of 16.73%. The company had revenue of $16.61 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.37 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.13 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 5.1% on a year-over-year basis. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.660-2.760 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 2.64 earnings per share for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, October 7th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 15th were issued a dividend of $0.85 per share. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, September 15th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio is presently 272.00%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Sanford C. Bernstein raised their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 4th. UBS Group upped their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $145.00 to $175.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 20th. Daiwa Securities Group upgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $143.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, August 12th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $142.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, August 20th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $140.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 21st. Seventeen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $151.92.

About Merck & Co., Inc.

Merck & Co, Inc is a global healthcare company that develops, manufactures and markets prescription medicines, vaccines and animal-health products. Its pharmaceutical business focuses on oncology, infectious diseases, cardiology, immunology and other areas of significant medical need. The company serves patients, healthcare providers and institutions in markets worldwide.

Merck’s principal products include Keytruda, an immunotherapy used to treat a range of cancers; Gardasil and Gardasil 9, vaccines that help protect against human papillomavirus; and Januvia and Janumet, medicines used to manage type 2 diabetes.