Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) Short Interest Down 14.6% in January

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) saw a significant decline in short interest in the month of January. As of January 30th, there was short interest totaling 28,729,402 shares, a decline of 14.6% from the January 15th total of 33,654,686 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 12,072,510 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.4 days. Currently, 1.2% of the company’s shares are sold short. Currently, 1.2% of the company’s shares are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 12,072,510 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.4 days.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have weighed in on MRK. Zacks Research downgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Friday, January 9th. UBS Group upped their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $105.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 7th. Bank of America increased their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 15th. TD Cowen boosted their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $100.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 20th. Finally, Citigroup upped their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $115.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 4th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $123.71.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Johannes Jacobus Oosthuizen sold 15,000 shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $121.87, for a total transaction of $1,828,050.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 21,197 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,583,278.39. The trade was a 41.44% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Richard R. Deluca sold 37,685 shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock in a transaction on Friday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $120.92, for a total value of $4,556,870.20. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 160,174 shares in the company, valued at $19,368,240.08. This represents a 19.05% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 320,176 shares of company stock worth $38,281,735. 0.09% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Merck & Co., Inc.

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in MRK. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 254,322,763 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,770,014,000 after purchasing an additional 2,185,853 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 1.6% during the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 120,040,168 shares of the company’s stock worth $12,737,504,000 after purchasing an additional 1,859,990 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 60,047,984 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,307,572,000 after purchasing an additional 249,110 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 9.4% in the 2nd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 53,865,466 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,263,991,000 after buying an additional 4,636,183 shares in the last quarter. Finally, DLD Asset Management LP increased its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 30.1% during the 3rd quarter. DLD Asset Management LP now owns 47,500,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,986,675,000 after acquiring an additional 11,000,000 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Up 0.1%

Shares of NYSE:MRK traded up $0.12 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $121.53. 9,898,276 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 13,558,218. 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 firm’s 50 day moving average price is $108.80 and its 200-day moving average price is $94.84. The stock has a market capitalization of $301.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.69, a PEG ratio of 2.27 and a beta of 0.28. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12-month low of $73.31 and a 12-month high of $123.33.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 3rd. The company reported $2.04 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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 firm had revenue of $16.40 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.19 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.72 earnings per share. Merck & Co., Inc.’s quarterly revenue was up 5.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.000-5.150 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The firm 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 $0.85 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 16th. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.8%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio is 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.