Johannes Jacobus Oosthuizen Sells 15,000 Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) Stock

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) insider Johannes Jacobus Oosthuizen sold 15,000 shares of the company’s 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 in the company, valued at $2,583,278.39. This represents a 41.44% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website.

Merck & Co., Inc. Trading Up 1.8%

Shares of MRK opened at $121.92 on Friday. The business has a 50-day moving average of $106.58 and a 200 day moving average of $93.23. Merck & Co., Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $73.31 and a fifty-two week high of $122.66. The firm has a market cap of $302.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.27 and a beta of 0.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 1.44 and a current ratio of 1.66.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 3rd. The company reported $2.04 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.01 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $16.40 billion for 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 45.22%. The company’s revenue was up 5.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.72 earnings per share. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.000-5.150 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 7th. Investors 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 yield of 2.8%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 46.70%.

Institutional Trading of Merck & Co., Inc.

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its position in 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 purchasing an additional 8,710 shares during the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 52.2% during the 2nd quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 11,494 shares of the company’s stock valued at $910,000 after buying an additional 3,941 shares in the last quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 4.9% during the 2nd quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 10,509 shares of the company’s stock valued at $832,000 after buying an additional 488 shares in the last quarter. Sax Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 98.0% during the 2nd quarter. Sax Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 16,626 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,316,000 after acquiring an additional 8,227 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Clear Creek Financial Management LLC grew its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 14.9% in the second quarter. Clear Creek Financial Management LLC now owns 7,546 shares of the company’s stock worth $598,000 after acquiring an additional 980 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on MRK shares. BMO Capital Markets upgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $82.00 to $130.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 18th. Zacks Research cut Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Friday, January 9th. Bank of America raised their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 15th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $92.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 2nd. Finally, Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $115.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $119.53.

Merck & Co., Inc. News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: Q4 results topped estimates (EPS and revenue) and management set FY‑2026 EPS guidance of $5.00–$5.15 while citing growth drivers such as Keytruda, Animal Health and new drug launches — a near-term earnings beat that supports upside. Earnings Beat
• Positive Sentiment: Guggenheim raised its price target from $122 to $140 and kept a Buy rating, giving analysts’ support to the rally and indicating ~15% further upside from recent levels. Guggenheim PT Raise
• Positive Sentiment: Other broker notes are bullish — Citigroup and Scotiabank published favorable outlooks/target increases highlighting execution and price appreciation potential. Citigroup Forecast Scotiabank Lift
• Neutral Sentiment: Zacks flags a “subdued” 2026 outlook driven by acquisition-related charges, which mutes the beat; but it still points to Keytruda, Animal Health and new launches as the primary growth levers — a mixed read on near-term margin/earnings progression. Zacks Analysis
• Negative Sentiment: Significant insider selling this week: CEO Robert M. Davis sold ~47,434 shares, CFO Caroline Litchfield ~41,997 shares, EVP Richard Deluca ~37,685 shares, CMO Chirfi Guindo ~20,000 and multiple other senior executives also trimmed positions — large, coordinated filings that may weigh on sentiment despite corporate explanations (e.g., diversification or tax/planned sales). SEC filings: CEO Form 4 CFO Form 4 EVP Form 4

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.