Journey Strategic Wealth LLC Increases Stock Position in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Journey Strategic Wealth LLC raised its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 27.0% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 28,118 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 5,972 shares during the quarter. Journey Strategic Wealth LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $2,360,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Darwin Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 237.4% during the third quarter. Darwin Wealth Management LLC now owns 307 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 216 shares in the last quarter. Kilter Group LLC purchased a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 2nd quarter worth about $27,000. Barnes Dennig Private Wealth Management LLC raised its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 302.3% in the 3rd quarter. Barnes Dennig Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 354 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 266 shares during the last quarter. Bare Financial Services Inc lifted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 51.9% during the 2nd quarter. Bare Financial Services Inc now owns 366 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 125 shares during the period. Finally, Evolution Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 2nd quarter valued at about $31,000. Institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Jennifer Zachary sold 121,573 shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock in a transaction on Monday, February 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $119.15, for a total transaction of $14,485,422.95. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 68,916 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,211,341.40. The trade was a 63.82% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CMO Chirfi Guindo sold 20,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $121.88, for a total transaction of $2,437,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief marketing officer directly owned 80,615 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,825,356.20. This represents a 19.88% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 320,176 shares of company stock valued at $38,281,735. Insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MRK has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Bank of America lifted their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 15th. Royal Bank Of Canada began coverage on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Wednesday, February 25th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $142.00 target price on the stock. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $105.00 to $130.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 7th. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased 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. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $125.88.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Up 3.5%

Shares of MRK stock opened at $123.45 on Monday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12 month low of $73.31 and a 12 month high of $125.14. The stock has a market cap of $305.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.96, a P/E/G ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 0.27. The company has a current ratio of 1.54, a quick ratio of 1.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $112.93 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $97.49.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 3rd. The company reported $2.04 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.01 by $0.03. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 44.57% and a net margin of 28.08%.The firm had revenue of $16.40 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.19 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.72 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter 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 expect that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 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 Tuesday, April 7th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 16th will be issued 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 yield of 2.8%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s payout ratio is currently 46.70%.

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.