What is Erste Group Bank’s Estimate for MRK FY2026 Earnings?

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) – Investment analysts at Erste Group Bank reduced their FY2026 earnings estimates for shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday, February 18th. Erste Group Bank analyst H. Engel now forecasts that the company will post earnings of $5.13 per share for the year, down from their previous forecast of $5.14. The consensus estimate for Merck & Co., Inc.’s current full-year earnings is $9.01 per share. Erste Group Bank also issued estimates for Merck & Co., Inc.’s FY2027 earnings at $9.76 EPS.

Several other equities analysts also recently commented on the company. UBS Group raised their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $105.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 7th. Barclays assumed coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Friday. They set an “overweight” rating and a $140.00 price objective for the company. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $100.00 to $102.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, December 12th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Sunday, February 8th. Finally, Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 15th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $124.80.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Up 0.2%

Shares of MRK opened at $122.05 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.44, a current ratio of 1.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $110.66 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $96.02. The stock has a market cap of $302.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.77, a P/E/G ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 0.28. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12 month low of $73.31 and a 12 month high of $123.33.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last issued its earnings results 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 net margin of 28.08% and a return on equity of 45.22%. The business had revenue of $16.40 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.19 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.72 EPS. The firm’s 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.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Merck & Co., Inc.

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of MRK. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 29.5% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 38,278 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,808,000 after buying an additional 8,710 shares during the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC boosted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 52.2% during 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. Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC boosted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.7% during the 2nd quarter. Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC now owns 11,976 shares of the company’s stock worth $948,000 after acquiring an additional 317 shares during the last quarter. Fiduciary Wealth Partners LLC grew its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 313.3% during the second quarter. Fiduciary Wealth Partners LLC now owns 2,203 shares of the company’s stock valued at $174,000 after purchasing an additional 1,670 shares during the period. Finally, Prudent Man Advisors LLC increased its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 20.6% in the second quarter. Prudent Man Advisors LLC now owns 17,523 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,387,000 after purchasing an additional 2,989 shares in the last quarter. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Johannes Jacobus Oosthuizen sold 15,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $121.87, for a total transaction of $1,828,050.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 21,197 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,583,278.39. This represents a 41.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP David Michael Williams sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $121.91, for a total value of $609,550.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 30,838 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,759,460.58. This represents a 13.95% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last three months, insiders sold 320,176 shares of company stock worth $38,281,735. 0.09% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 7th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 16th will be paid a $0.85 dividend. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 16th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 46.70%.

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.