Blume Capital Management Inc. Acquires 7,574 Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Blume Capital Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 325.1% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 9,904 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 7,574 shares during the quarter. Blume Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $831,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of MRK. Brighton Jones LLC raised its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 29.5% during the 4th 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 during the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC grew its stake 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 acquiring an additional 3,941 shares during the period. Richardson Financial Services Inc. increased its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 26.1% during the 2nd quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 893 shares of the company’s stock valued at $73,000 after purchasing an additional 185 shares in the last quarter. GFS Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 60.0% during the second quarter. GFS Advisors LLC now owns 131,814 shares of the company’s stock valued at $10,434,000 after buying an additional 49,440 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Inman Jager Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 11.7% during the 2nd quarter. Inman Jager Wealth Management LLC now owns 17,272 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,367,000 after purchasing an additional 1,811 shares in the last quarter. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Up 1.8%

Shares of MRK opened at $121.92 on Monday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 1 year low of $73.31 and a 1 year high of $122.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 1.66 and a quick ratio of 1.44. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $106.58 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $93.29. The firm has a market cap of $302.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.75, a P/E/G ratio of 2.28 and a beta of 0.28.

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

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MRK has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Bank of America boosted their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 15th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $115.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 4th. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $100.00 to $102.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, December 12th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $82.00 to $130.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 18th. 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. Based on data from MarketBeat, Merck & Co., Inc. presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $119.53.

More Merck & Co., Inc. News

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Merck & Co., Inc. news, CFO Caroline Litchfield sold 41,997 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $119.61, for a total value of $5,023,261.17. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 90,192 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,787,865.12. The trade was a 31.77% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, VP Dean Y. Li sold 15,087 shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $118.77, for a total transaction of $1,791,882.99. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president directly owned 102,270 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,146,607.90. The trade was a 12.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 188,603 shares of company stock worth $22,612,212. 0.09% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.