DKRT Investments Corp. Raises Stock Holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

DKRT Investments Corp. lifted its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 160.0% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 32,500 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 20,000 shares during the quarter. Merck & Co., Inc. comprises 0.7% of DKRT Investments Corp.’s portfolio, making the stock its 21st biggest holding. DKRT Investments Corp.’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $2,728,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MRK. Darwin Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 237.4% in the third quarter. Darwin Wealth Management LLC now owns 307 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 216 shares during the last quarter. Kilter Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the second quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Barnes Dennig Private Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake 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 valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 266 shares during the period. Bare Financial Services Inc boosted its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 51.9% during the second quarter. Bare Financial Services Inc now owns 366 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 125 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Evolution Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $31,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Merck & Co., Inc.

In related news, CMO Chirfi Guindo sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $118.41, for a total transaction of $1,184,100.00. Following the transaction, the chief marketing officer directly owned 70,615 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,361,522.15. The trade was a 12.40% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Johannes Jacobus Oosthuizen sold 15,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $121.87, for a total value of $1,828,050.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 21,197 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,583,278.39. This represents a 41.44% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last quarter, insiders sold 320,176 shares of company stock worth $38,281,735. Insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have weighed in on the company. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $100.00 to $102.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, December 12th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $150.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Friday, February 13th. Bank of America lifted their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 15th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 4th. Finally, UBS Group increased 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. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $125.88.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Down 0.2%

Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock opened at $115.85 on Friday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a twelve month low of $73.31 and a twelve month high of $125.14. The stock has a market cap of $286.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.91, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.24 and a beta of 0.27. The company has a current ratio of 1.54, a quick ratio of 1.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $114.20 and a 200 day moving average price of $98.51.

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 company had revenue of $16.40 billion for 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 firm’s revenue was up 5.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.72 earnings per share. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.000-5.150 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 7th. Investors of record on Monday, March 16th will be issued a dividend of $0.85 per share. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.9%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 16th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 46.70%.

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.