Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK Stock Holdings Raised by American Century Companies Inc.

American Century Companies Inc. increased its position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 20.9% in the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 4,559,640 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 787,181 shares during the quarter. American Century Companies Inc.’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $382,691,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Darwin Wealth Management LLC grew its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 237.4% in 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 in the last quarter. Kilter Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Bare Financial Services Inc lifted its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 51.9% in the 2nd quarter. Bare Financial Services Inc now owns 366 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 125 shares during the last quarter. Barnes Dennig Private Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 302.3% in the third quarter. Barnes Dennig Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 354 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 266 shares during the period. Finally, Evolution Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the second quarter valued at approximately $31,000. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other Merck & Co., Inc. news, CMO Chirfi Guindo sold 20,000 shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $121.88, for a total transaction of $2,437,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief marketing officer directly owned 80,615 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,825,356.20. This trade represents a 19.88% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Robert M. Davis sold 47,434 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $118.04, for a total value of $5,599,109.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 443,602 shares in the company, valued at approximately $52,362,780.08. This represents a 9.66% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 320,176 shares of company stock valued at $38,281,735. 0.13% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Merck & Co., Inc. Trading Up 3.5%

Shares of MRK stock opened at $123.45 on Friday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12 month low of $73.31 and a 12 month high of $125.14. The company has a quick ratio of 1.44, a current ratio of 1.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89. The business’s 50 day moving average is $112.93 and its two-hundred day moving average is $97.27. The company has a market cap of $305.22 billion, a PE ratio of 16.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 0.28.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 3rd. The company reported $2.04 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.01 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $16.40 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.19 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 44.57% and a net margin of 28.08%.The company’s quarterly revenue was up 5.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.72 earnings per share. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.000-5.150 EPS. Equities analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on MRK shares. Wolfe Research upgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $135.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. Zacks Research downgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Friday, January 9th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 4th. Royal Bank Of Canada assumed coverage on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Wednesday. They set an “outperform” rating and a $142.00 price target for the company. Finally, Bank of America boosted their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 15th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $125.88.

About Merck & Co., Inc.

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.