Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK Stock: Raleigh Capital Management Inc. Cuts Holdings

Raleigh Capital Management Inc. reduced its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 67.6% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 4,853 shares of the company’s stock after selling 10,147 shares during the quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $705,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of MRK. Round Rock Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.7% during the second quarter. Round Rock Advisors LLC now owns 9,901 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,272,000 after buying an additional 66 shares in the last quarter. Cypress Wealth Services LLC grew its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.5% during the third quarter. Cypress Wealth Services LLC now owns 13,807 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,960,000 after acquiring an additional 69 shares during the period. Code Waechter LLC raised its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 3.4% in the third quarter. Code Waechter LLC now owns 2,179 shares of the company’s stock worth $317,000 after acquiring an additional 71 shares in the last quarter. Cascade Financial Partners LLC raised its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.5% in the second quarter. Cascade Financial Partners LLC now owns 14,746 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,895,000 after acquiring an additional 80 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Somerset Trust Co lifted its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.9% in the 2nd quarter. Somerset Trust Co now owns 8,701 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,118,000 after acquiring an additional 81 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: Strong Q3 results and raised outlook: Merck reported adjusted earnings of $2.49 per share versus the $2.09 analyst consensus, while revenue rose 4.7% year over year to $18.09 billion, ahead of estimates. Management raised its 2026 sales and adjusted-profit outlook, providing the main catalyst for the stock’s advance. Merck tops quarterly estimates and hikes profit outlook
• Positive Sentiment: Growth beyond Keytruda: Keytruda, including the newer Qlex formulation, delivered stronger-than-expected sales, while WINREVAIR continued to expand rapidly. Newer product launches are helping offset losses from generic competition and support Merck’s growth outlook. Merck Q3 earnings call highlights pipeline progress and raised outlook
• Positive Sentiment: Pipeline progress: Positive Phase 3 endometrial-cancer data for Keytruda and sacituzumab tirumotecan, along with FDA priority review for the latter, strengthens confidence in Merck’s oncology pipeline and its ability to address future revenue pressure. Merck Phase 3 endometrial cancer data and FDA review
• Positive Sentiment: Supportive analyst action: Guggenheim raised its price target to $171 and maintained a buy rating, indicating additional potential upside based on the earnings and pipeline outlook.

Insider Activity

In other Merck & Co., Inc. news, EVP David Williams sold 52,847 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 5th. The shares were 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 directly owned 31,716 shares of the company’s stock, 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 filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP David Maraldo sold 18,706 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $128.72, for a total transaction of $2,407,836.32. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 18,212 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,344,248.64. The trade was a 50.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 228,238 shares of company stock worth $29,977,783. 0.17% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Merck & Co., Inc. Trading Up 2.3%

Shares of NYSE MRK opened at $149.75 on Friday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12 month low of $82.01 and a 12 month high of $156.92. The company has a market cap of $369.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 154.38, a P/E/G ratio of 6.38 and a beta of 0.21. The company has a quick ratio of 1.10, a current ratio of 1.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $146.90 and a 200-day simple moving average of $126.69.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 29th. The company reported $2.49 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.09 by $0.40. The business had revenue of $18.09 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $17.33 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 16.56% and a net margin of 3.64%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.58 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 2.80 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently weighed in on MRK. Zacks Research lowered shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Monday, October 19th. Leerink Partners lifted their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $127.00 to $161.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 9th. Cantor Fitzgerald boosted their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $120.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 8th. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $145.00 to $175.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 20th. Finally, Rothschild & Co Redburn raised their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $140.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, July 6th. Seventeen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Merck & Co., Inc. has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $156.08.

Merck & Co., Inc. Profile

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.