National Pension Service Raises Stake in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

National Pension Service boosted its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 0.5% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 5,791,782 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 29,696 shares during the quarter. National Pension Service owned approximately 0.23% of Merck & Co., Inc. worth $744,244,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Pinnbrook Capital Management LP increased its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 95.2% during the 4th quarter. Pinnbrook Capital Management LP now owns 23,280 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,450,000 after acquiring an additional 11,355 shares during the period. Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC bought a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the second quarter worth $11,470,000. Cibc World Market Inc. raised its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 32.6% in the fourth quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. now owns 1,301,744 shares of the company’s stock worth $137,022,000 after buying an additional 320,143 shares in the last quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. boosted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.0% during the second quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 2,578,024 shares of the company’s stock valued at $331,931,000 after buying an additional 51,393 shares during the period. Finally, Handelsbanken Fonder AB grew its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 13.9% during the fourth quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 1,843,042 shares of the company’s stock worth $193,999,000 after buying an additional 224,752 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Trading Down 0.5%

Shares of MRK stock opened at $147.69 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22, a current ratio of 1.32 and a quick ratio of 1.10. The business has a 50-day moving average of $135.91 and a 200 day moving average of $124.10. The stock has a market capitalization of $364.37 billion, a PE ratio of 118.15, a P/E/G ratio of 6.46 and a beta of 0.21. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 1-year low of $77.58 and a 1-year high of $156.92.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 4th. The company reported ($0.13) earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.26) by $0.13. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 16.73% and a net margin of 4.77%.The firm had revenue of $16.61 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.37 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.13 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 5.1% on a year-over-year basis. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.660-2.760 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 2.76 earnings per share for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 7th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 15th will be issued a $0.85 dividend. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 15th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 272.00%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MRK has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Weiss Ratings upgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 25th. Jefferies Financial Group cut shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 19th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $140.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 21st. Wall Street Zen upgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 22nd. Finally, Scotiabank upped their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $136.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 30th. Sixteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Merck & Co., Inc. presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $150.33.

Key Merck & Co., Inc. News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Analyst upgrades support valuation: Leerink Partners raised its price target from $127 to $161 and maintained an “outperform” rating, while Guggenheim increased its target from $146 to $170 and assigned a “buy” rating. The revisions suggest analysts see further upside from Merck’s commercial execution and pipeline. Benzinga analyst rating reports
• Positive Sentiment: Pipeline expansion addresses the Keytruda patent cliff: Merck is pairing antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs) with Keytruda in women’s cancers, seeking to improve outcomes in difficult-to-treat tumors while building future revenue sources before Keytruda faces patent pressure. Merck pairs ADCs with Keytruda in women’s cancer push
• Neutral Sentiment: Investor attention is focused on management commentary: Merck presented at the Wells Fargo 21st Annual Healthcare Conference and is scheduled to participate in Morgan Stanley’s global healthcare conference. These events may provide additional detail on Keytruda demand, pipeline progress and long-term growth plans. Wells Fargo healthcare conference transcript
• Neutral Sentiment: Keytruda and new products remain central to the bull case: Commentary highlights Keytruda’s current growth contribution and Merck’s efforts to develop products capable of extending momentum beyond the anticipated 2028 patent cliff. MRK’s strong recent performance and elevated valuation leave expectations high. Merck trading near 52-week high
• Negative Sentiment: Long-term patent risk remains: Investors are watching whether Merck can replace revenue that may be lost when Keytruda’s exclusivity weakens. The company’s ability to commercialize ADC combinations and other pipeline assets is therefore critical to sustaining growth and its current valuation. Merck outlook and GARDASIL commentary

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Jennifer Zachary sold 80,315 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $133.46, for a total transaction of $10,718,839.90. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 45,509 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,073,631.14. This represents a 63.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Chirfi Guindo sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $135.00, for a total value of $1,350,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 36,613 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,942,755. This represents a 21.45% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 228,238 shares of company stock worth $29,977,783. 0.17% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Merck & Co., Inc. Profile

Merck & Co, Inc is a global healthcare company that develops, manufactures, and markets prescription medicines, vaccines, and animal-health products. The company serves patients, healthcare providers, and customers in markets worldwide through its Human Health and Animal Health businesses.

Merck’s pharmaceutical portfolio includes oncology, infectious disease, cardiology, immunology, and other therapeutic areas. Its products include Keytruda, an immunotherapy used to treat various cancers; Gardasil, a vaccine that helps protect against human papillomavirus (HPV); and Januvia, a treatment for type 2 diabetes.