Ledyard National Bank Has $6.45 Million Stock Position in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Ledyard National Bank lessened its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 9.5% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 76,839 shares of the company’s stock after selling 8,060 shares during the quarter. Ledyard National Bank’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $6,449,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Darwin Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 237.4% during the 3rd quarter. Darwin Wealth Management LLC now owns 307 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 216 shares in the last quarter. Kilter Group LLC bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the second quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Bare Financial Services Inc boosted its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 51.9% in the second quarter. Bare Financial Services Inc now owns 366 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 125 shares during the period. Barnes Dennig Private Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 302.3% during the third quarter. Barnes Dennig Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 354 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 266 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Evolution Wealth Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the second quarter worth $31,000. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Trending Headlines about Merck & Co., Inc.

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

• Positive Sentiment: Q4 results topped estimates (EPS and revenue) and management set FY‑2026 EPS guidance of $5.00–$5.15 while citing growth drivers such as Keytruda, Animal Health and new drug launches — a near-term earnings beat that supports upside. Earnings Beat
• Positive Sentiment: Guggenheim raised its price target from $122 to $140 and kept a Buy rating, giving analysts’ support to the rally and indicating ~15% further upside from recent levels. Guggenheim PT Raise
• Positive Sentiment: Other broker notes are bullish — Citigroup and Scotiabank published favorable outlooks/target increases highlighting execution and price appreciation potential. Citigroup Forecast Scotiabank Lift
• Neutral Sentiment: Zacks flags a “subdued” 2026 outlook driven by acquisition-related charges, which mutes the beat; but it still points to Keytruda, Animal Health and new launches as the primary growth levers — a mixed read on near-term margin/earnings progression. Zacks Analysis
• Negative Sentiment: Significant insider selling this week: CEO Robert M. Davis sold ~47,434 shares, CFO Caroline Litchfield ~41,997 shares, EVP Richard Deluca ~37,685 shares, CMO Chirfi Guindo ~20,000 and multiple other senior executives also trimmed positions — large, coordinated filings that may weigh on sentiment despite corporate explanations (e.g., diversification or tax/planned sales). SEC filings: CEO Form 4 CFO Form 4 EVP Form 4

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. Scotiabank boosted their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 4th. TD Cowen boosted their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $100.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 20th. Zacks Research cut Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Friday, January 9th. Cantor Fitzgerald lifted their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $116.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $100.00 to $102.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, December 12th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $119.53.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

Shares of NYSE MRK opened at $121.92 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 1.66 and a quick ratio of 1.44. The business has a 50-day moving average of $106.58 and a 200-day moving average of $93.15. The stock has a market capitalization of $302.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.75, a PEG ratio of 2.23 and a beta of 0.28. Merck & Co., Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $73.31 and a fifty-two week high of $122.66.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 3rd. The company reported $2.04 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.01 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $16.40 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.19 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 45.22% and a net margin of 28.08%.The business’s quarterly revenue was up 5.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.72 earnings per share. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.000-5.150 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 7th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 16th will be issued a $0.85 dividend. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 16th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio is presently 46.70%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO Caroline Litchfield sold 41,997 shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $119.61, for a total value of $5,023,261.17. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 90,192 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,787,865.12. This trade represents a 31.77% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Robert M. Davis sold 47,434 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $118.04, for a total transaction of $5,599,109.36. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 443,602 shares in the company, valued at $52,362,780.08. This represents a 9.66% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 188,603 shares of company stock valued at $22,612,212 in the last ninety days. 0.13% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Merck & Co., Inc. Company 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.