Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK Stake Lowered by Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership

Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership cut its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 70.5% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,936,330 shares of the company’s stock after selling 7,007,793 shares during the quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $353,211,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Chesapeake Wealth Management grew its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. Chesapeake Wealth Management now owns 14,740 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,552,000 after purchasing an additional 87 shares in the last quarter. South Plains Financial Inc. raised its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. South Plains Financial Inc. now owns 15,535 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,635,000 after purchasing an additional 89 shares in the last quarter. Syverson Strege & Co raised its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.2% during the 4th quarter. Syverson Strege & Co now owns 4,142 shares of the company’s stock worth $436,000 after purchasing an additional 90 shares in the last quarter. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV lifted its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.4% during the 1st quarter. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV now owns 23,433 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,819,000 after buying an additional 91 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Westside Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 3.1% during the 4th quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,142 shares of the company’s stock valued at $331,000 after buying an additional 93 shares during the last quarter. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE MRK opened at $130.57 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a current ratio of 1.30. The firm has a market cap of $322.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.78, a P/E/G ratio of 5.08 and a beta of 0.19. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $121.27 and its 200-day simple moving average is $117.62. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 52 week low of $76.66 and a 52 week high of $131.74.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported ($1.28) earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($1.47) by $0.19. The firm had revenue of $16.29 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.85 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 27.55% and a net margin of 13.59%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.22 EPS. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.040-5.160 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 2.74 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 8th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 15th were paid a $0.85 dividend. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.6%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 15th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s payout ratio is presently 95.77%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. Weiss Ratings downgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Friday, May 15th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $112.00 to $113.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. Guggenheim boosted their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $140.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, July 13th. CICC Research assumed coverage on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Wednesday, June 24th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $138.00 price target on the stock. Finally, UBS Group raised their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $130.00 to $145.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, April 13th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have given a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $133.94.

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.