Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK Stock Holdings Lessened by Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA

Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA cut its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 26.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 285,569 shares of the company’s stock after selling 105,312 shares during the period. Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $30,059,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Darwin Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 237.4% during the third quarter. Darwin Wealth Management LLC now owns 307 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 216 shares during the last quarter. Kilter Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $27,000. Bare Financial Services Inc boosted its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 51.9% during the 2nd quarter. Bare Financial Services Inc now owns 366 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares during the period. Barnes Dennig Private Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 302.3% during the 3rd quarter. Barnes Dennig Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 354 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 266 shares during the period. Finally, Evolution Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 2nd quarter worth $31,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

Shares of MRK opened at $114.17 on Friday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a one year low of $73.31 and a one year high of $125.14. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $115.74 and its 200-day moving average is $100.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 1.30 and a current ratio of 1.54. The firm has a market capitalization of $282.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 0.27.

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

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 7th. Investors of record on Monday, March 16th will be paid a dividend of $0.85 per share. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.0%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 16th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 46.70%.

Insider Activity

In other Merck & Co., Inc. news, EVP Jennifer Zachary sold 121,573 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the executive vice president directly owned 68,916 shares in the company, valued at $8,211,341.40. This represents a 63.82% 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, insider Johannes Jacobus Oosthuizen sold 15,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $121.87, for a total value of $1,828,050.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 21,197 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,583,278.39. The trade was a 41.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 320,176 shares of company stock valued at $38,281,735 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Wall Street Zen lowered Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, February 28th. BMO Capital Markets raised shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $82.00 to $130.00 in a report on Thursday, December 18th. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $105.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 7th. TD Cowen increased their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $100.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 20th. Finally, Wolfe Research upgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $135.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $126.81.

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.