Burling Wealth Partners LLC Sells 9,333 Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Burling Wealth Partners LLC lessened its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 23.4% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 30,486 shares of the company’s stock after selling 9,333 shares during the period. Burling Wealth Partners LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $2,559,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of MRK. Dakota Community Bank & Trust NA grew its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 3.4% during the third quarter. Dakota Community Bank & Trust NA now owns 3,566 shares of the company’s stock valued at $299,000 after buying an additional 116 shares during the period. Security National Bank of Sioux City Iowa IA grew its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 3.6% during the 3rd quarter. Security National Bank of Sioux City Iowa IA now owns 3,402 shares of the company’s stock valued at $286,000 after acquiring an additional 119 shares during the period. Investors Research Corp increased its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 1.3% during the 3rd quarter. Investors Research Corp now owns 9,325 shares of the company’s stock worth $783,000 after purchasing an additional 120 shares during the last quarter. Trust Point Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.8% in the 3rd quarter. Trust Point Inc. now owns 14,834 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,245,000 after purchasing an additional 120 shares during the period. Finally, Nicolet Bankshares Inc. lifted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.0% in the second quarter. Nicolet Bankshares Inc. now owns 6,169 shares of the company’s stock valued at $488,000 after purchasing an additional 121 shares during the last quarter. 76.07% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other Merck & Co., Inc. news, insider Johannes Jacobus Oosthuizen sold 15,000 shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $121.87, for a total transaction of $1,828,050.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 21,197 shares in the company, valued at $2,583,278.39. The trade was a 41.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP David Michael Williams sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $121.91, for a total transaction of $609,550.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 30,838 shares in the company, valued at $3,759,460.58. The trade was a 13.95% 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 worth $38,281,735. Company insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:MRK opened at $121.77 on Thursday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $109.77 and a 200 day moving average of $95.32. The company has a current ratio of 1.66, a quick ratio of 1.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77. The stock has a market cap of $302.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.73, a P/E/G ratio of 2.27 and a beta of 0.28. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12 month low of $73.31 and a 12 month high of $123.33.

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

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MRK has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Wall Street Zen downgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Sunday, February 8th. Scotiabank increased their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 4th. Guggenheim upped their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $122.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 6th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $100.00 to $102.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, December 12th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald upped their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $116.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 4th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $123.71.

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.