Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) EVP Richard Deluca Sells 20,784 Shares of Stock

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) EVP Richard Deluca sold 20,784 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $130.43, for a total transaction of $2,710,857.12. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 134,703 shares in the company, valued at approximately $17,569,312.29. This represents a 13.37% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Up 2.1%

Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock traded up $2.68 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $133.10. 9,894,503 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 10,707,019. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.30 and a quick ratio of 1.06. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $124.58 and its 200 day moving average price is $119.47. The stock has a market cap of $328.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 106.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.66 and a beta of 0.19. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12-month low of $77.58 and a 12-month high of $135.05.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The company reported ($0.13) EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.26) by $0.13. The firm had revenue of $16.61 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.37 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 16.05% and a net margin of 4.77%.Merck & Co., Inc.’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.13 earnings per share. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.660-2.760 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 2.76 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 7th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 15th will be given a dividend of $0.85 per share. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 15th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 272.00%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in MRK. Cascade Financial Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.5% in the second quarter. Cascade Financial Partners LLC now owns 14,746 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,895,000 after acquiring an additional 80 shares in the last quarter. Somerset Trust Co lifted its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.9% during the 2nd quarter. Somerset Trust Co now owns 8,701 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,118,000 after purchasing an additional 81 shares in the last quarter. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.9% during the 2nd quarter. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC now owns 8,747 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,124,000 after purchasing an additional 81 shares in the last quarter. Stronghold Wealth Management L.L.C. grew its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.6% in the 2nd quarter. Stronghold Wealth Management L.L.C. now owns 3,237 shares of the company’s stock valued at $416,000 after purchasing an additional 82 shares during the period. Finally, Lederer & Associates Investment Counsel CA grew its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.9% in the 2nd quarter. Lederer & Associates Investment Counsel CA now owns 9,603 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,234,000 after purchasing an additional 84 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Trending Headlines about Merck & Co., Inc.

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

• Positive Sentiment: Daiwa upgraded Merck to “outperform” and set a $143 price target, implying additional upside from recent trading levels. Finviz analyst upgrade
• Positive Sentiment: Argus raised its price target to $145 and reiterated a “buy” rating, adding to the positive analyst momentum around MRK. Benzinga analyst action
• Positive Sentiment: Erste Group increased its FY2026 earnings estimate to $2.75 per share from $2.70, bringing its forecast close to the $2.76 consensus estimate. MarketBeat earnings estimate
• Positive Sentiment: The FDA and EMA accepted applications to expand ENFLONSIA for RSV prevention in additional high-risk young children. The regulatory milestone could broaden Merck’s growth opportunities beyond oncology and help diversify its portfolio as Keytruda faces future patent challenges. Merck ENFLONSIA regulatory news
• Positive Sentiment: Merck’s latest results included $16.61 billion in revenue, above analyst expectations, with oncology and animal health contributing to performance. The company also continues to attract institutional ownership, which exceeds 76%. Merck earnings call transcript

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $145.00 to $150.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 8th. Cantor Fitzgerald restated a “neutral” rating and set a $120.00 price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Monday, July 6th. Daiwa Securities Group upgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $143.00 target price for the company in a report on Wednesday. Scotiabank increased their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $136.00 to $155.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 30th. Finally, Citigroup began coverage on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $125.00 price target on the stock. Fifteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Merck & Co., Inc. currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $135.50.

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.