Close Asset Management Ltd Lowers Stake in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Close Asset Management Ltd lessened its position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 60.7% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 5,128 shares of the company’s stock after selling 7,918 shares during the period. Close Asset Management Ltd’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $430,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of MRK. Lansing Street Advisors raised its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 5.2% in the 3rd quarter. Lansing Street Advisors now owns 4,015 shares of the company’s stock valued at $340,000 after acquiring an additional 199 shares during the last quarter. Hohimer Wealth Management LLC grew its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 19.3% in the third quarter. Hohimer Wealth Management LLC now owns 56,579 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,749,000 after purchasing an additional 9,170 shares during the period. Advisor OS LLC increased its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.4% in the third quarter. Advisor OS LLC now owns 35,445 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,975,000 after purchasing an additional 142 shares during the last quarter. Westpac Banking Corp lifted its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 1.2% during the third quarter. Westpac Banking Corp now owns 122,065 shares of the company’s stock worth $10,245,000 after buying an additional 1,489 shares during the period. Finally, Interchange Capital Partners LLC lifted its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 13.6% during the third quarter. Interchange Capital Partners LLC now owns 10,879 shares of the company’s stock worth $913,000 after buying an additional 1,306 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

More Merck & Co., Inc. News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Royal Bank of Canada initiated coverage with an “outperform”/”moderate buy” and a $142 price target, highlighting analyst conviction and potential upside for MRK. Royal Bank of Canada Coverage
• Positive Sentiment: Merck announced late‑breaking Phase 3 data for the doravirine/islatravir (DOR/ISL) two‑drug HIV regimen and is in FDA review; trial results matched an established competitor (Biktarvy), supporting a potential new HIV franchise as Keytruda faces patent pressure. DOR/ISL Phase 3 Data (BusinessWire)
• Positive Sentiment: Merck Animal Health received FDA approval for NUMELVI (atinvicitinib) for control of pruritus in dogs — a product approval that diversifies revenue and strengthens the veterinary business. NUMELVI FDA Approval
• Neutral Sentiment: Coverage and research pieces (Zacks, ResearchAndMarkets profile) are increasing visibility and may attract more institutional interest, but they are informational rather than immediate price catalysts. Zacks Trending Coverage
• Neutral Sentiment: Articles noting retirees shifting into dividend funds could help demand for large dividend-paying pharma names like MRK over time, but this is a gradual flow rather than an immediate driver. Dividend Funds Flow
• Negative Sentiment: Retail sentiment on Reddit has cooled sharply (reported drop from bullish 63 to neutral 43), suggesting some short-term retail profit‑taking and weaker buyer interest despite the positive news flow. Reddit Sentiment Cooling

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MRK has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $105.00 to $130.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 7th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $150.00 price target for the company in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Sunday, February 8th. Royal Bank Of Canada started coverage on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Wednesday. They set an “outperform” rating and a $142.00 price objective for the company. Finally, TD Cowen increased their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $100.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 20th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $125.88.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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 transaction, the executive vice president owned 68,916 shares in the company, valued at $8,211,341.40. This represents a 63.82% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CMO Chirfi Guindo sold 10,000 shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $118.41, for a total transaction of $1,184,100.00. Following the sale, the chief marketing officer owned 70,615 shares in the company, valued at $8,361,522.15. This represents a 12.40% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 320,176 shares of company stock valued at $38,281,735. Company insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

MRK opened at $119.30 on Friday. 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 moving average of $112.48 and a two-hundred day moving average of $96.97. The company has a market cap of $294.96 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.39, a P/E/G ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 0.28. The company has a quick ratio of 1.44, a current ratio of 1.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 3rd. The company reported $2.04 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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 business had revenue of $16.40 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.19 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.72 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter 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. On average, analysts expect that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

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

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.