Citigroup Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) Stock

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) had its price objective hoisted by equities research analysts at Citigroup from $115.00 to $120.00 in a report issued on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a “neutral” rating on the stock. Citigroup’s price objective points to a potential upside of 0.32% from the stock’s current price.

Several other brokerages have also recently weighed in on MRK. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $110.00 to $111.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 18th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Monday, December 29th. BMO Capital Markets raised Merck & Co., Inc. from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $82.00 to $130.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 18th. UBS Group upped their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $105.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 7th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted 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 research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $117.87.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

MRK opened at $119.62 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $296.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.43, a PEG ratio of 2.00 and a beta of 0.28. The company has a current ratio of 1.66, a quick ratio of 1.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12-month low of $73.31 and a 12-month high of $122.43. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $106.23 and its 200-day simple moving average is $92.85.

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

Institutional Trading of Merck & Co., Inc.

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Darwin Wealth Management LLC lifted its position 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 acquiring an additional 216 shares during the period. Kilter Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the second quarter worth about $27,000. Bare Financial Services Inc raised its stake 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 worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares during the last quarter. Barnes Dennig Private Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings 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 purchasing an additional 266 shares during the period. Finally, Evolution Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the second quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Key Stories Impacting Merck & Co., Inc.

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

• Positive Sentiment: Merck reported Q4 results that beat estimates (EPS $2.04 vs. ~$2.01; revenue $16.4B vs. ~$16.2B), showing solid sales growth and margin strength — a primary short-term bullish catalyst. Merck Trading Higher on Better-Than-Expected Earnings
• Positive Sentiment: Scotiabank raised its target on MRK, citing continued execution across the business — supports analyst-driven buying. Scotiabank Lifts Merck Target
• Positive Sentiment: Wells Fargo bumped its target to $135 and kept an overweight stance (largest upside among recent upgrades), giving a meaningful analyst tailwind for the stock. Wells Fargo Raises Merck Target
• Positive Sentiment: High-profile endorsement: Jim Cramer flagged MRK as one of his favorite pharma stocks, which can spur retail interest and intraday buying momentum. Jim Cramer on Merck
• Neutral Sentiment: Citi and Cantor Fitzgerald nudged targets to ~$120 but maintained neutral ratings — modest upside only, so limited incremental impact on momentum. Analyst Target Changes via Benzinga
• Negative Sentiment: Management struck a cautious tone on 2026 outlook despite the beat; the guidance language and conservative near-term commentary could cap upside until clarity on growth drivers. Merck Beats Estimates but Cautious on 2026

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.