Fidelis Capital Partners LLC Has $5.17 Million Position in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Fidelis Capital Partners LLC raised its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 22.5% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 49,118 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 9,029 shares during the period. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $5,170,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. D.A. Davidson & CO. lifted its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 4.4% during the fourth quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 576,959 shares of the company’s stock worth $60,731,000 after buying an additional 24,576 shares in the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 48.9% in the fourth quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 97,818 shares of the company’s stock worth $10,296,000 after purchasing an additional 32,114 shares during the period. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 12.7% in the third quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. now owns 123,366 shares of the company’s stock worth $10,364,000 after purchasing an additional 13,940 shares during the period. NEOS Investment Management LLC increased its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 39.9% in the third quarter. NEOS Investment Management LLC now owns 347,684 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,181,000 after purchasing an additional 99,074 shares during the period. Finally, Campbell Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the third quarter worth $1,866,000. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently commented on MRK shares. Zacks Research upgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 17th. Citigroup started coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $125.00 price target on the stock. UBS Group raised their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $130.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, April 13th. Barclays started coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Friday, February 20th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $140.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $142.00 price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Monday, March 30th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $128.18.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

Merck & Co., Inc. stock opened at $120.27 on Thursday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12-month low of $75.40 and a 12-month high of $125.14. The company has a quick ratio of 1.06, a current ratio of 1.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $116.23 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $111.17. The stock has a market cap of $297.04 billion, a PE ratio of 33.88, a P/E/G ratio of 2.69 and a beta of 0.18.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported ($1.28) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($1.47) by $0.19. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 27.55% and a net margin of 13.59%.The firm had revenue of $16.29 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $15.85 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.22 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.9% on a year-over-year basis. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.040-5.160 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 5.16 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, July 8th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 15th will be given a $0.85 dividend. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 15th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s payout ratio is currently 95.77%.

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.