Cantor Fitzgerald Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) Stock

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) had its price target upped by equities research analysts at Cantor Fitzgerald from $116.00 to $120.00 in a note issued to investors on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a “neutral” rating on the stock. Cantor Fitzgerald’s price target would suggest a potential upside of 0.19% from the stock’s previous close.

A number of other research firms have also weighed in on MRK. Bank of America raised their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 15th. Wolfe Research raised Merck & Co., Inc. from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $135.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Zacks Research cut shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Friday, January 9th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $110.00 to $111.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 18th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Merck & Co., Inc. presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $117.53.

Merck & Co., Inc. Trading Up 3.4%

NYSE:MRK traded up $3.94 on Wednesday, hitting $119.78. 6,146,544 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 13,116,030. The stock has a market cap of $297.29 billion, a PE ratio of 15.84, a PEG ratio of 1.60 and a beta of 0.28. Merck & Co., Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $73.31 and a fifty-two week high of $119.77. The company has a current ratio of 1.66, a quick ratio of 1.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $105.66 and a 200-day moving average of $92.48.

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 29.63% and a return on equity of 44.54%. The firm had revenue of $16.40 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.19 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.72 earnings per share. Merck & Co., Inc.’s 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. As a group, equities analysts expect that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Merck & Co., Inc.

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Chesapeake Wealth Management lifted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. Chesapeake Wealth Management now owns 14,740 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,552,000 after purchasing an additional 87 shares during the last quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 3.1% during the 4th quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,142 shares of the company’s stock valued at $331,000 after acquiring an additional 93 shares during the period. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 26.9% during the 4th quarter. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 444 shares of the company’s stock worth $47,000 after acquiring an additional 94 shares during the last quarter. Payne Capital LLC grew its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. Payne Capital LLC now owns 10,637 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,120,000 after acquiring an additional 97 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Abound Wealth Management increased its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 6.8% in the 4th quarter. Abound Wealth Management now owns 1,554 shares of the company’s stock worth $164,000 after purchasing an additional 99 shares during the period. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Key Stories Impacting Merck & Co., Inc.

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

• Positive Sentiment: Wells Fargo upgraded Merck to “overweight” and raised its price target to $135, citing upside versus the current share level — a clear near‑term bullish catalyst for the stock. Wells Fargo upgrade
• Positive Sentiment: Q4 results beat consensus: EPS $2.04 and revenue above expectations, driven by continued Keytruda demand and contributions from newer products — a fundamental reason investors still value Merck’s oncology franchise. Q4 results release
• Neutral Sentiment: Earnings call transcript and analyst notes are available for details on guidance drivers and pipeline milestones — useful for investors who want to parse management’s tone and pipeline timelines. Earnings call transcript
• Negative Sentiment: FY2026 guidance disappointed: Merck guided adjusted EPS $5.00–$5.15 and revenue $65.5–$67.0B, below consensus, citing expected generic competition from patent expirations (including Januvia). That drove earlier selling pressure and is the main near‑term risk to growth. Reuters on guidance & patent losses
• Negative Sentiment: Analysts and press noted Merck expects slower earnings growth as it increases M&A/spending and navigates a make‑or‑break pipeline year, which could pressure margins and upside in 2026 absent clear new product offsets. WSJ on growth outlook

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.