Crawford Investment Counsel Inc. Reduces Holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Crawford Investment Counsel Inc. lessened its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 19.8% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 162,136 shares of the company’s stock after selling 40,074 shares during the period. Crawford Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $13,608,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of the business. One Charles Private Wealth Services LLC raised its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 3.3% during the 3rd quarter. One Charles Private Wealth Services LLC now owns 3,464 shares of the company’s stock worth $291,000 after purchasing an additional 111 shares during the last quarter. Dakota Community Bank & Trust NA increased 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 worth $299,000 after buying an additional 116 shares in the last quarter. Security National Bank of Sioux City Iowa IA increased its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 3.6% during the third quarter. Security National Bank of Sioux City Iowa IA now owns 3,402 shares of the company’s stock worth $286,000 after buying an additional 119 shares in the last quarter. Investors Research Corp raised its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 1.3% in the third quarter. Investors Research Corp now owns 9,325 shares of the company’s stock worth $783,000 after acquiring an additional 120 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Trust Point Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.8% in the third quarter. Trust Point Inc. now owns 14,834 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,245,000 after acquiring an additional 120 shares during the last quarter. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Key Merck & Co., Inc. News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Unusually large call buying: traders bought ~672,962 call options on Friday (a ~1,339% jump vs. typical daily call volume), signaling heavy bullish speculation or hedging interest that can lift near-term implied volatility and upside pressure on MRK shares.
• Positive Sentiment: Phase 3 WELIREG data and regulatory filings deepen Merck’s oncology growth story — new Phase 3 results for belzutifan (WELIREG) combos with KEYTRUDA or LENVIMA show meaningful improvement in RCC; FDA filings with priority reviews/PDUFA dates for 2026 could expand label and revenue runway. Merck’s WELIREG Kidney Cancer Trials Deepen Oncology Growth Story
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst upgrades/price-target raises: Wells Fargo raised its price target to $150 and assigned an overweight rating, and Leerink lifted its target as well — both moves increase institutional demand signals and implied upside for MRK. Benzinga Leerink Raises Merck & Co. Inc. (MRK) Price Target
• Positive Sentiment: RBC Capital maintains a Buy rating, reinforcing analyst support and potentially bolstering demand from long-only managers. RBC Capital Sticks to Its Buy Rating for Merck & Company (MRK)
• Positive Sentiment: Bullish price commentary: coverage and price-target pieces (e.g., 247WallStreet) argue broader upside (some scenarios to $150) based on drug pipeline potential, supporting a favorable narrative among momentum investors. Merck Price Prediction: Sac-TMT Drug Potential Pushes MRK to $150
• Neutral Sentiment: Market report on Ovidrel/Ovitrelle highlights expanding fertility market opportunities that could be a modest long-term tailwind for related Merck products, but it’s not an immediate revenue catalyst. Ovidrel or Ovitrelle Market Research Report 2026
• Neutral Sentiment: Misc. coverage items (e.g., stock-picking lists and unrelated biotech moves) mention MRK in broader contexts but are unlikely to materially move the stock on their own. 1 Unpopular Stock That Deserves Some Love and 2 We Avoid ImmunityBio Stock Soars 295% YTD

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently commented on the company. Zacks Research lowered Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Friday, January 9th. Scotiabank boosted their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 4th. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $100.00 to $102.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, December 12th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $150.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Finally, Wolfe Research raised shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $135.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Merck & Co., Inc. presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $126.81.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Down 0.3%

Shares of NYSE:MRK opened at $115.61 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.54, a quick ratio of 1.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89. The firm has a market cap of $285.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.88, a PEG ratio of 2.24 and a beta of 0.27. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $115.26 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $99.68. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12-month low of $73.31 and a 12-month high of $125.14.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 3rd. The company reported $2.04 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.01 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $16.40 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.19 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 28.08% and a return on equity of 44.57%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 5.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.72 EPS. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.000-5.150 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 7th. Investors of record on Monday, March 16th will be given a dividend of $0.85 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 16th. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.9%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio is 46.70%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CMO Chirfi Guindo sold 20,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $121.88, for a total transaction of $2,437,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief marketing officer directly owned 80,615 shares in the company, valued at $9,825,356.20. This represents a 19.88% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Jennifer Zachary sold 121,573 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $119.15, for a total value of $14,485,422.95. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 68,916 shares in the company, valued at $8,211,341.40. This trade represents a 63.82% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 320,176 shares of company stock valued at $38,281,735 in the last ninety days. 0.13% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.