Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB Sells 40,319 Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB lowered its position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 14.4% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 239,973 shares of the company’s stock after selling 40,319 shares during the period. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $20,141,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Brighton Jones LLC grew its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 29.5% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 38,278 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,808,000 after buying an additional 8,710 shares during the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 52.2% in the 2nd quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 11,494 shares of the company’s stock worth $910,000 after acquiring an additional 3,941 shares during the last quarter. WBI Investments LLC lifted its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 251.8% in the 2nd quarter. WBI Investments LLC now owns 11,943 shares of the company’s stock valued at $945,000 after acquiring an additional 8,548 shares in the last quarter. Nordwand Advisors LLC lifted its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 4,772.1% in the 2nd quarter. Nordwand Advisors LLC now owns 44,872 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,552,000 after acquiring an additional 43,951 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 61.8% during the 2nd quarter. Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC now owns 28,936 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,291,000 after purchasing an additional 11,054 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MRK has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Barclays assumed coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Friday, February 20th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $140.00 price objective for the company. Scotiabank raised their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, December 4th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $150.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Bank of America upped their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 15th. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $100.00 to $102.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, December 12th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have given a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $126.81.

Merck & Co., Inc. Trading Up 0.4%

Shares of MRK stock opened at $115.84 on Wednesday. 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 company has a market capitalization of $286.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.91, a PEG ratio of 2.23 and a beta of 0.27. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 52-week low of $73.31 and a 52-week high of $125.14. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $115.55 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $100.24.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 3rd. The company reported $2.04 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 44.57%. The firm had revenue of $16.40 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.19 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.72 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue 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. Research analysts anticipate 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. Investors of record on Monday, March 16th will be issued a dividend of $0.85 per share. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.9%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 16th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 46.70%.

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

In other Merck & Co., Inc. news, EVP David Michael Williams sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $121.91, for a total value of $609,550.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 30,838 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,759,460.58. The trade was a 13.95% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Jennifer Zachary sold 121,573 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 9th. The shares were 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 owned 68,916 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,211,341.40. This trade represents a 63.82% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 320,176 shares of company stock valued at $38,281,735 in the last ninety days. 0.09% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.