Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK Position Reduced by Fisher Funds Management LTD

Fisher Funds Management LTD reduced its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 20.6% in the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 151,132 shares of the company’s stock after selling 39,106 shares during the quarter. Fisher Funds Management LTD’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $18,180,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Brighton Jones LLC grew its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 29.5% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 38,278 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,808,000 after purchasing an additional 8,710 shares in the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC increased its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 52.2% in the second quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 11,494 shares of the company’s stock valued at $910,000 after buying an additional 3,941 shares during the last quarter. Diversify Advisory Services LLC increased its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 94.1% in the second quarter. Diversify Advisory Services LLC now owns 32,256 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,590,000 after buying an additional 15,636 shares during the last quarter. Diversify Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 22.2% during the second quarter. Diversify Wealth Management LLC now owns 38,031 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,054,000 after buying an additional 6,897 shares in the last quarter. Finally, MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. raised its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 111.7% during the second quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 681,128 shares of the company’s stock valued at $53,918,000 after buying an additional 359,356 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

NYSE MRK opened at $114.04 on Monday. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $115.94 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $113.68. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 52 week low of $76.66 and a 52 week high of $125.14. The stock has a market cap of $281.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 0.21. The company has a current ratio of 1.30, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported ($1.28) earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($1.47) by $0.19. The company had revenue of $16.29 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $15.85 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 27.55% and a net margin of 13.59%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.22 earnings per share. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.040-5.160 EPS. Analysts forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 5.17 EPS for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 8th. Investors of record on Monday, June 15th will be given a $0.85 dividend. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.0%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 15th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 95.77%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MRK has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, April 6th. Zacks Research upgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 17th. Citigroup started coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $125.00 price target on the stock. Weiss Ratings cut Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research note on Friday, May 15th. Finally, UBS Group raised their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $130.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, April 13th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $128.18.

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.