Drucker Wealth 3.0 LLC Purchases 5,997 Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Drucker Wealth 3.0 LLC increased its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 70.4% during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 14,515 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 5,997 shares during the quarter. Drucker Wealth 3.0 LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $1,218,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in 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 valued at $4,263,991,000 after acquiring an additional 4,636,183 shares during the period. DLD Asset Management LP bought a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the second quarter worth $2,889,340,000. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the second quarter valued at $2,858,570,000. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 23.5% in the second quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 27,032,601 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,139,901,000 after purchasing an additional 5,135,748 shares during the period. Finally, Fisher Asset Management LLC raised its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.3% during the 2nd quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 25,013,697 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,980,084,000 after purchasing an additional 567,900 shares during the last quarter. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

Shares of NYSE MRK opened at $121.53 on Wednesday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a twelve month low of $73.31 and a twelve month high of $123.33. The company has a quick ratio of 1.44, a current ratio of 1.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77. The firm has a market capitalization of $301.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.69, a P/E/G ratio of 2.27 and a beta of 0.28. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $109.29 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $95.14.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 3rd. The company reported $2.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.01 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $16.40 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.19 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 28.08% and a return on equity of 45.22%. The firm’s revenue was up 5.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.72 EPS. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.000-5.150 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 7th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 16th will be paid a dividend of $0.85 per share. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 16th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio is 46.70%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the company. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $100.00 to $102.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, December 12th. TD Cowen boosted their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $100.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 20th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $150.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 13th. UBS Group increased their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $105.00 to $130.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 7th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald boosted their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $116.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 4th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $123.71.

Insider Activity at Merck & Co., Inc.

In other news, EVP Jennifer Zachary sold 121,573 shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $119.15, for a total value of $14,485,422.95. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 68,916 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,211,341.40. This trade represents a 63.82% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Robert M. Davis sold 47,434 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $118.04, for a total transaction of $5,599,109.36. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 443,602 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $52,362,780.08. This represents a 9.66% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 320,176 shares of company stock worth $38,281,735 over the last 90 days. 0.13% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.