Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK Shares Sold by Gotham Asset Management LLC

Gotham Asset Management LLC reduced its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 24.5% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 447,427 shares of the company’s stock after selling 144,880 shares during the quarter. Gotham Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $47,096,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 29.5% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 38,278 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,808,000 after purchasing an additional 8,710 shares during the period. Sivia Capital Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 52.2% during the 2nd quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 11,494 shares of the company’s stock worth $910,000 after buying an additional 3,941 shares in the last quarter. Diversify Advisory Services LLC lifted its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 94.1% in the 2nd quarter. Diversify Advisory Services LLC now owns 32,256 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,590,000 after acquiring an additional 15,636 shares during the period. Diversify Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 22.2% in the second quarter. Diversify Wealth Management LLC now owns 38,031 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,054,000 after acquiring an additional 6,897 shares in the last quarter. Finally, MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 111.7% in the second quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 681,128 shares of the company’s stock valued at $53,918,000 after acquiring an additional 359,356 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the company. Zacks Research raised Merck & Co., Inc. from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 17th. UBS Group upped their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $130.00 to $145.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, April 13th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $150.00 to $145.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Citigroup started coverage on shares of 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. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $142.00 price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Monday, March 30th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $128.18.

Merck & Co., Inc. Trading Up 0.4%

Shares of NYSE MRK opened at $115.67 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 1.30, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02. Merck & Co., Inc. has a one year low of $76.66 and a one year high of $125.14. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $116.22 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $113.53. The firm has a market capitalization of $285.69 billion, a PE ratio of 32.58, a PEG ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 0.21.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported ($1.28) earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($1.47) by $0.19. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 13.59% and a return on equity of 27.55%. The firm had revenue of $16.29 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.85 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.22 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.040-5.160 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 5.17 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 8th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.85 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 15th. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.9%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio is currently 95.77%.

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.