Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. Trims Stock Position in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. cut its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 5.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,385,592 shares of the company’s stock after selling 83,512 shares during the period. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. owned approximately 0.06% of Merck & Co., Inc. worth $145,847,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Kingdom Financial Group LLC. purchased a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. 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 worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 109 shares during the period. Tucker Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter worth about $34,000. Entrust Financial LLC purchased a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter worth about $37,000. Finally, United Financial Planning Group LLC purchased a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the third quarter worth about $31,000. 76.07% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

Merck & Co., Inc. stock opened at $118.49 on Friday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $116.39 and its 200-day simple moving average is $111.46. The company has a market capitalization of $292.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.67 and a beta of 0.18. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 1 year low of $75.40 and a 1 year high of $125.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a current ratio of 1.30.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last released its quarterly earnings results 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. The business had revenue of $16.29 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate 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 was up 4.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.22 EPS. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.040-5.160 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 5.16 earnings per share for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 8th. Investors of record on Monday, June 15th will be issued a $0.85 dividend. The ex-dividend date 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 payout ratio is 95.77%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have commented on MRK. Zacks Research raised shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 17th. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $130.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, April 13th. Barclays began coverage on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Friday, February 20th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $140.00 target price on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $142.00 target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Monday, March 30th. Finally, Citigroup started coverage on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $125.00 price target on the stock. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $128.18.

Key Merck & Co., Inc. News

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

• Positive Sentiment: The FDA granted Breakthrough Therapy designation to calderasib (MK-1084) with Keytruda in a lung cancer indication, a sign the program may move faster and expand Merck’s oncology growth prospects. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst coverage and recent articles highlighted Merck’s newer drugs, pipeline assets, and M&A options as potential offsets to looming Keytruda patent expiration, reinforcing the bull case for long-term growth. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Merck has also been drawing investor attention as a trending stock and has outperformed the S&P 500 over the past year, suggesting market confidence remains relatively strong. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Merck will participate in the Jefferies Global Healthcare Conference, which could provide an update on strategy but is not itself a major business catalyst. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Shareholders backed board nominees, pay, and auditor ratification at the annual meeting, which reduces governance uncertainty but is unlikely to move the stock much. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: The main longer-term concern remains Keytruda’s eventual loss of exclusivity, which could pressure Merck’s biggest revenue driver if replacement products do not scale quickly enough. Article Title

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.