5,969 Shares in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK Purchased by Aspen Investment Management Inc

Aspen Investment Management Inc acquired a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund acquired 5,969 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $628,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of MRK. DLD Asset Management LP boosted its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 30.1% in the 3rd quarter. DLD Asset Management LP now owns 47,500,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,986,675,000 after purchasing an additional 11,000,000 shares during the period. Jennison Associates LLC bought a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter valued at about $585,192,000. Invesco Ltd. boosted its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 16.6% in the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 19,844,936 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,665,585,000 after purchasing an additional 2,821,766 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. boosted its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 20.7% in the 3rd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 15,933,909 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,336,877,000 after purchasing an additional 2,735,459 shares during the period. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 254,322,763 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,770,014,000 after purchasing an additional 2,185,853 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have issued reports on the stock. Guggenheim boosted their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $122.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 6th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $150.00 to $145.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 1st. Cantor Fitzgerald boosted their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $116.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, April 6th. Finally, Zacks Research raised shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 17th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $128.18.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:MRK opened at $113.01 on Thursday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $115.82 and a 200-day moving average of $109.92. The stock has a market capitalization of $279.12 billion, a PE ratio of 31.83, a PEG ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 0.18. 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 12 month low of $75.40 and a 12 month high of $125.14.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported ($1.28) EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($1.47) by $0.19. The company had revenue of $16.29 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $15.85 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 13.59% and a return on equity of 27.55%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.22 EPS. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.040-5.160 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 5.16 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.