Fort Washington Investment Advisors Inc. OH Has $79.37 Million Stock Position in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Fort Washington Investment Advisors Inc. OH grew its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 4.9% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 659,851 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 31,083 shares during the period. Fort Washington Investment Advisors Inc. OH’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $79,373,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of MRK. Kingdom Financial Group LLC. acquired a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. Abound Financial LLC acquired a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. Prosperity Bancshares Inc bought a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. United Financial Planning Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 3rd quarter valued at about $31,000. Finally, High Note Wealth LLC increased its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 58.9% in the fourth quarter. High Note Wealth LLC now owns 294 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 109 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on MRK shares. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and set a $142.00 price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Monday, March 30th. UBS Group upped their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $130.00 to $145.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, April 13th. CICC Research started coverage on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Wednesday. They set an “outperform” rating and a $138.00 target price for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, April 6th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $150.00 to $145.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 1st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Merck & Co., Inc. presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $128.72.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock opened at $128.35 on Friday. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $116.08 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $114.33. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 1-year low of $76.66 and a 1-year high of $128.78. The company has a current ratio of 1.30, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02. The company has a market cap of $316.99 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.15, a PEG ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.21.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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 company had revenue of $16.29 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.85 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.22 EPS. The firm’s revenue 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 anticipate that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 5.17 EPS for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 8th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 15th will be paid a $0.85 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 15th. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.6%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s payout ratio is 95.77%.

Key Stories Impacting Merck & Co., Inc.

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

• Positive Sentiment: Merck announced FDA approval for Keytruda and Keytruda Qlex, each combined with Gilead’s Trodelvy, as a first-line treatment for PD-L1+ advanced triple-negative breast cancer, expanding a major revenue-driving franchise. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Merck also won EU approval for Keytruda plus Padcev in resectable muscle-invasive bladder cancer patients who cannot receive cisplatin chemotherapy, another label expansion that could support future sales. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Merck’s collaboration with Gilead continues to generate attention after positive HIV trial results, helping reinforce confidence in the company’s research pipeline and strategic partnerships. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Merck was highlighted in CNBC’s “Final Trades,” which reflects ongoing market attention but does not by itself change the company’s fundamentals. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Zacks noted that MRK is a trending stock, suggesting elevated investor interest rather than a specific new operating development. Article Title

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.