Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK Shares Sold by Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC

Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC trimmed its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 28.1% in the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 54,097 shares of the company’s stock after selling 21,136 shares during the quarter. Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $4,540,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. SlateStone Wealth LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.7% in the 3rd quarter. SlateStone Wealth LLC now owns 118,910 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,980,000 after purchasing an additional 875 shares during the last quarter. Willis Investment Counsel grew its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 19.2% during the 3rd quarter. Willis Investment Counsel now owns 313,817 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,339,000 after buying an additional 50,635 shares during the period. John G Ullman & Associates Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 4.7% during the 3rd quarter. John G Ullman & Associates Inc. now owns 98,706 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,284,000 after buying an additional 4,393 shares during the last quarter. Bond & Devick Financial Network Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 18.3% during the 3rd quarter. Bond & Devick Financial Network Inc. now owns 3,227 shares of the company’s stock worth $271,000 after buying an additional 500 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Providence Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.0% in the 3rd quarter. Providence Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 11,129 shares of the company’s stock worth $969,000 after buying an additional 215 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have issued reports on MRK. UBS Group boosted their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $105.00 to $130.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 7th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $115.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $100.00 to $102.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, December 12th. BMO Capital Markets upgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their price target for the company from $82.00 to $130.00 in a report on Thursday, December 18th. Finally, Zacks Research cut shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Friday, January 9th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $119.53.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

Merck & Co., Inc. stock opened at $121.92 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $302.61 billion, a PE ratio of 16.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.23 and a beta of 0.28. Merck & Co., Inc. has a one year low of $73.31 and a one year high of $122.66. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $106.58 and its 200 day moving average price is $93.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 1.44 and a current ratio of 1.66.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 3rd. The company reported $2.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.01 by $0.03. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 28.08% and a return on equity of 45.22%. The company had revenue of $16.40 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.19 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.72 earnings per share. Merck & Co., Inc.’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.0% on a year-over-year basis. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.000-5.150 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

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

Merck & Co., Inc. News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: Q4 results topped estimates (EPS and revenue) and management set FY‑2026 EPS guidance of $5.00–$5.15 while citing growth drivers such as Keytruda, Animal Health and new drug launches — a near-term earnings beat that supports upside. Earnings Beat
• Positive Sentiment: Guggenheim raised its price target from $122 to $140 and kept a Buy rating, giving analysts’ support to the rally and indicating ~15% further upside from recent levels. Guggenheim PT Raise
• Positive Sentiment: Other broker notes are bullish — Citigroup and Scotiabank published favorable outlooks/target increases highlighting execution and price appreciation potential. Citigroup Forecast Scotiabank Lift
• Neutral Sentiment: Zacks flags a “subdued” 2026 outlook driven by acquisition-related charges, which mutes the beat; but it still points to Keytruda, Animal Health and new launches as the primary growth levers — a mixed read on near-term margin/earnings progression. Zacks Analysis
• Negative Sentiment: Significant insider selling this week: CEO Robert M. Davis sold ~47,434 shares, CFO Caroline Litchfield ~41,997 shares, EVP Richard Deluca ~37,685 shares, CMO Chirfi Guindo ~20,000 and multiple other senior executives also trimmed positions — large, coordinated filings that may weigh on sentiment despite corporate explanations (e.g., diversification or tax/planned sales). SEC filings: CEO Form 4 CFO Form 4 EVP Form 4

Insider Transactions at Merck & Co., Inc.

In other news, CEO Robert M. Davis sold 47,434 shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $118.04, for a total transaction of $5,599,109.36. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 443,602 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $52,362,780.08. The trade was a 9.66% 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 hyperlink. Also, VP Dean Y. Li sold 15,087 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $118.77, for a total value of $1,791,882.99. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president directly owned 102,270 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $12,146,607.90. This represents a 12.86% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 188,603 shares of company stock worth $22,612,212 over the last three months. Insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

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.