New York State Teachers Retirement System Sells 15,283 Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

New York State Teachers Retirement System lessened its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 0.7% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 2,057,639 shares of the company’s stock after selling 15,283 shares during the quarter. Merck & Co., Inc. comprises 0.5% of New York State Teachers Retirement System’s portfolio, making the stock its 29th largest position. New York State Teachers Retirement System’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $247,513,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. Kingdom Financial Group LLC. purchased a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Abound Financial LLC bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Prosperity Bancshares Inc purchased a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. United Financial Planning Group LLC purchased a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the third quarter valued at $31,000. Finally, High Note Wealth LLC raised its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 58.9% during 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 last quarter. Institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on MRK shares. Scotiabank increased their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $136.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $150.00 to $145.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 1st. CICC Research initiated coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Wednesday, June 24th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $138.00 price target for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, April 6th. Finally, Bank of America increased their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $130.00 to $141.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have issued a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Merck & Co., Inc. has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $131.83.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

Shares of NYSE MRK opened at $129.34 on Friday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a twelve month low of $76.66 and a twelve month high of $130.29. The firm has a market cap of $319.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.43, a PEG ratio of 2.68 and a beta of 0.19. The company has a 50 day moving average of $117.04 and a 200 day moving average of $115.27. The company has a quick ratio of 1.06, a current ratio of 1.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported ($1.28) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 business had revenue of $16.29 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $15.85 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.22 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 4.9% on a year-over-year basis. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.040-5.160 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 5.19 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared 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. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 15th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio is presently 95.77%.

Merck & Co., Inc. Company Profile

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.