Heritage Trust Co Increases Stake in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Heritage Trust Co increased its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 4.2% during the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 84,905 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 3,445 shares during the period. Merck & Co., Inc. accounts for approximately 0.9% of Heritage Trust Co’s portfolio, making the stock its 25th largest position. Heritage Trust Co’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $10,910,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Gould Asset Management LLC CA raised its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 10.4% during the second quarter. Gould Asset Management LLC CA now owns 3,182 shares of the company’s stock worth $409,000 after purchasing an additional 300 shares during the period. Argent Trust Co grew its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 4.4% during the 2nd quarter. Argent Trust Co now owns 204,960 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,337,000 after buying an additional 8,571 shares during the period. J.Safra Asset Management Corp increased its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 3.7% during the 2nd quarter. J.Safra Asset Management Corp now owns 4,298 shares of the company’s stock worth $552,000 after buying an additional 154 shares during the last quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 2nd quarter worth $10,121,000. Finally, Fielder Capital Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 23.1% during the 2nd quarter. Fielder Capital Group LLC now owns 6,488 shares of the company’s stock worth $834,000 after buying an additional 1,219 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Merck & Co., Inc.

In other news, EVP David Michael Williams sold 52,847 shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 sale, the executive vice president owned 31,716 shares in the company, valued at $4,084,069.32. This trade represents a 62.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Jennifer Zachary sold 80,315 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $133.46, for a total transaction of $10,718,839.90. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 45,509 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,073,631.14. The trade was a 63.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last quarter, insiders sold 228,238 shares of company stock worth $29,977,783. Insiders own 0.17% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Down 1.2%

Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock opened at $150.67 on Tuesday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $128.81 and a 200 day moving average price of $121.53. The company has a current ratio of 1.32, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22. Merck & Co., Inc. has a twelve month low of $77.58 and a twelve month high of $154.49. The stock has a market cap of $371.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 120.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.40 and a beta of 0.19.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The company reported ($0.13) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.26) by $0.13. The firm had revenue of $16.61 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.37 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 16.73% and a net margin of 4.77%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 5.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.13 EPS. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.660-2.760 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 2.76 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 7th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 15th will be 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 is Tuesday, September 15th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 272.00%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on MRK. Argus lifted their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $130.00 to $145.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 11th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped 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. Citigroup began coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $125.00 price objective on the stock. CICC Research started coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Wednesday, June 24th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $138.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Daiwa Securities Group upgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $143.00 target price for the company in a report on Wednesday, August 12th. Fifteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Merck & Co., Inc. has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $144.10.

Merck & Co., Inc. Profile

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.