Legal & General Group Plc Buys 1,156,112 Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Legal & General Group Plc grew its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 5.9% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 20,659,157 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,156,112 shares during the quarter. Legal & General Group Plc owned approximately 0.83% of Merck & Co., Inc. worth $1,733,923,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Darwin Wealth Management LLC grew its stake 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 worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 216 shares during the last quarter. Kilter Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 2nd quarter valued at about $27,000. Barnes Dennig Private Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in shares of 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 buying an additional 266 shares during the period. Bare Financial Services Inc lifted its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 51.9% in 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 period. Finally, Evolution Wealth Management Inc. bought a new stake 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 Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Caroline Litchfield sold 41,997 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $119.61, for a total transaction of $5,023,261.17. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 90,192 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,787,865.12. This represents a 31.77% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Robert M. Davis sold 47,434 shares of the firm’s 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 owned 443,602 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $52,362,780.08. This trade represents a 9.66% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 320,176 shares of company stock valued at $38,281,735 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

Key Stories Impacting Merck & Co., Inc.

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

• Positive Sentiment: Merck exercised an option on Evaxion’s EVX‑B3 infectious disease vaccine program — a sign of active pipeline expansion and BD activity that can add future revenue potential. Evaxion (EVAX) Q4 2025 Earnings Call Transcript
• Positive Sentiment: Merck expanded a multi‑year collaboration with Tempus AI on oncology and drug discovery tools — this reinforces R&D capability and could accelerate discovery programs. Assessing Tempus AI (TEM) Valuation After Expanded Merck Collaboration Announcement
• Positive Sentiment: Market research on Pneumovax 23 highlights expanding adult/geriatric immunization demand and distribution improvements — potential tailwinds for Merck’s vaccine franchise over the medium term. Pneumovax 23 (Merck & Co) Market Research Report 2026
• Neutral Sentiment: Headline market move note — outlets flagged MRK trading above the prior close, reflecting today’s mixed news flow and investor repositioning. Merck (MRK) Rises Higher Than Market: Key Facts
• Neutral Sentiment: Industry/reporting items: analyses and Dow pieces compare Merck with peers and flag sector shifts — useful context but not single‑handedly market moving for MRK. 2 Dow Jones Stocks to Research Further and 1 Facing Headwinds
• Neutral Sentiment: Factbox: drugmakers are increasing U.S. manufacturing and inventory ahead of potential tariffs — could protect supply but may raise near‑term capex and inventory costs. Factbox-Global drugmakers rush to boost US presence as tariff threat looms
• Negative Sentiment: Big headwind: Gardasil sales plunged ~39% in 2025 (weak demand in China) and management does not expect a rebound in 2026 — a meaningful near‑term drag on Merck’s vaccine revenues and top‑line growth. Will Weak Gardasil Sales Continue to Weigh on MRK’s Top Line in 2026?

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on MRK shares. Cantor Fitzgerald increased their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $116.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 4th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $150.00 target price for the company in a research note on Friday, February 13th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $92.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 2nd. BMO Capital Markets upgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $82.00 to $130.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 18th. Finally, TD Cowen raised their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $100.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 20th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have given a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $125.88.

Merck & Co., Inc. Trading Up 1.2%

NYSE:MRK opened at $117.18 on Tuesday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a one year low of $73.31 and a one year high of $125.14. The company has a market cap of $289.72 billion, a PE ratio of 16.10, a PEG ratio of 2.24 and a beta of 0.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 1.54 and a quick ratio of 1.30. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $114.42 and a 200-day moving average of $98.93.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 3rd. The company reported $2.04 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.01 by $0.03. The firm 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 revenue for the quarter was up 5.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.72 EPS. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.000-5.150 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 7th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 16th will be given 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 dividend yield of 2.9%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 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.