Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK Shares Acquired by Fairvoy Private Wealth LLC

Fairvoy Private Wealth LLC increased its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 426.3% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 25,093 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 20,325 shares during the quarter. Fairvoy Private Wealth LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $3,646,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in MRK. Round Rock Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.7% during the 2nd quarter. Round Rock Advisors LLC now owns 9,901 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,272,000 after buying an additional 66 shares during the period. Cascade Financial Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.5% during the 2nd quarter. Cascade Financial Partners LLC now owns 14,746 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,895,000 after acquiring an additional 80 shares in the last quarter. Somerset Trust Co increased its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.9% in the second quarter. Somerset Trust Co now owns 8,701 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,118,000 after acquiring an additional 81 shares during the last quarter. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC increased its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.9% in the second quarter. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC now owns 8,747 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,124,000 after acquiring an additional 81 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Stronghold Wealth Management L.L.C. increased its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.6% in the second quarter. Stronghold Wealth Management L.L.C. now owns 3,237 shares of the company’s stock worth $416,000 after acquiring an additional 82 shares during the last quarter. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Down 1.6%

Merck & Co., Inc. stock traded down $2.37 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $143.58. 10,447,978 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 10,644,813. The company has a current ratio of 1.32, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22. The stock has a market cap of $354.24 billion, a P/E ratio of 114.86, a P/E/G ratio of 6.74 and a beta of 0.21. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 1-year low of $82.01 and a 1-year high of $156.92. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $145.60 and a two-hundred day moving average of $129.31.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The company reported ($0.13) earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.26) by $0.13. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 16.73% and a net margin of 4.77%. The company had revenue of $16.61 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.37 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.13 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 5.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.660-2.760 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 2.66 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, October 7th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 15th were issued a dividend of $0.85 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, September 15th. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.4%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio is currently 272.00%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Richard Deluca sold 20,784 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $130.43, for a total value of $2,710,857.12. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 134,703 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $17,569,312.29. This trade represents a 13.37% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP David Williams sold 52,847 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $128.77, for a total value of $6,805,108.19. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 31,716 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,084,069.32. This trade represents a 62.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 228,238 shares of company stock worth $29,977,783 in the last three months. 0.17% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently issued reports on the company. Scotiabank increased their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $155.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 29th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, October 3rd. Rothschild & Co Redburn upped their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $140.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, July 6th. Daiwa Securities Group raised Merck & Co., Inc. from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $143.00 price target for the company in a research note on Wednesday, August 12th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $150.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 5th. Seventeen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Merck & Co., Inc. currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $151.92.

About Merck & Co., Inc.

Merck & Co, Inc is a global healthcare company that develops, manufactures and markets prescription medicines, vaccines and animal-health products. Its pharmaceutical business focuses on oncology, infectious diseases, cardiology, immunology and other areas of significant medical need. The company serves patients, healthcare providers and institutions in markets worldwide.

Merck’s principal products include Keytruda, an immunotherapy used to treat a range of cancers; Gardasil and Gardasil 9, vaccines that help protect against human papillomavirus; and Januvia and Janumet, medicines used to manage type 2 diabetes.