Janney Montgomery Scott LLC Has $212.75 Million Position in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Janney Montgomery Scott LLC cut its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 1.4% in the second quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 1,655,632 shares of the company’s stock after selling 24,032 shares during the period. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $212,749,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in MRK. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter worth about $3,997,933,000. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 14.8% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 86,435,458 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,098,196,000 after purchasing an additional 11,156,354 shares during the last quarter. Cardano Risk Management B.V. acquired a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter valued at about $1,012,530,000. Jennison Associates LLC acquired a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter valued at about $585,192,000. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 37.9% in the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 18,753,390 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,973,983,000 after buying an additional 5,152,069 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Trending Headlines about Merck & Co., Inc.

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

• Positive Sentiment: Merck and Moderna reported that their personalized cancer therapy met key Phase 3 goals, improving recurrence-free and distant metastasis-free survival for high-risk melanoma patients when added to Keytruda. The result is the first major late-stage win for an mRNA cancer vaccine and strengthens the potential for regulatory approval and broader oncology applications. MRK/MRNA’s Personalized Cancer Therapy Delivers First Phase III Win
• Positive Sentiment: Several Wall Street firms raised their outlooks for MRK: Goldman Sachs increased its price target to $160 and kept a Buy rating, while BMO raised its target to $170 and UBS lifted its target to $175. Morgan Stanley also upgraded the shares to Overweight with a $179 target after the cancer-trial success.
• Positive Sentiment: Investors see Merck’s newer products, acquired assets and pipeline programs as a potential growth cushion against Keytruda’s eventual patent expiration. The company’s expanding portfolio could help diversify revenue beyond its flagship drug. Can Merck’s New Drugs Offer Growth Cushion Ahead of Keytruda LOE?
• Neutral Sentiment: Unusually high options activity indicates heightened investor interest and potential volatility, but it does not by itself establish the direction of the stock.
• Negative Sentiment: RBC Capital Markets downgraded Merck to Sector Perform and set a $150 target, arguing that execution risks and the 2028 Keytruda loss of exclusivity are being underestimated. RBC said near-term catalysts are attractive, but the stock’s valuation leaves limited room for additional gains. Merck upgraded at Morgan Stanley after cancer trial win; RBC downgrades
• Negative Sentiment: Jefferies separately moved Merck from Strong Buy to Hold. The central concern is that the shares have already rallied substantially on the trial news, making the current valuation appear demanding relative to the remaining patent and execution risks.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MRK has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $120.00 price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Monday, July 6th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $145.00 to $150.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 8th. Barclays boosted their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $140.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $140.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $142.00 to $170.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday. Fifteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $144.10.

Insider Transactions at Merck & Co., Inc.

In other Merck & Co., Inc. news, EVP David R. Maraldo sold 18,706 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $128.72, for a total value of $2,407,836.32. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 18,212 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,344,248.64. This trade represents a 50.67% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Chirfi Guindo sold 15,000 shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $131.00, for a total value of $1,965,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 46,613 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,106,303. This trade represents a 24.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 228,238 shares of company stock worth $29,977,783 over the last ninety days. 0.17% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Up 2.3%

Shares of NYSE:MRK opened at $152.43 on Friday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12 month low of $77.58 and a 12 month high of $154.49. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $128.09 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $121.23. The company has a quick ratio of 1.10, a current ratio of 1.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22. The firm has a market cap of $376.07 billion, a P/E ratio of 121.94, a P/E/G ratio of 6.58 and a beta of 0.19.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last posted 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 net margin of 4.77% and a return on equity of 16.73%. The firm had revenue of $16.61 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.37 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.13 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 5.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.660-2.760 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 2.76 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 7th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 15th will be issued a $0.85 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 15th. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.2%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 272.00%.

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.