Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK is Munich Reinsurance Co Stock Corp in Munich’s 4th Largest Position

Munich Reinsurance Co Stock Corp in Munich lifted its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 37.9% during the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 1,038,236 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 285,599 shares during the period. Merck & Co., Inc. accounts for 2.9% of Munich Reinsurance Co Stock Corp in Munich’s portfolio, making the stock its 4th biggest position. Munich Reinsurance Co Stock Corp in Munich’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $133,413,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Kingdom Financial Group LLC. acquired a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Abound Financial LLC acquired a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Prosperity Bancshares Inc acquired a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. High Note Wealth LLC increased its position 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 in the last quarter. Finally, IFC & Insurance Marketing Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $31,000. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock opened at $136.09 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $335.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 108.87, a PEG ratio of 5.86 and a beta of 0.19. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $125.88 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $120.23. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12 month low of $77.58 and a 12 month high of $137.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22, a current ratio of 1.32 and a quick ratio of 1.10.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The company reported ($0.13) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.26) by $0.13. The firm had revenue of $16.61 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.37 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 16.73% and a net margin of 4.77%.The business’s revenue was up 5.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.13 earnings per share. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.660-2.760 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 2.77 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 7th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.85 per share. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 15th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s payout ratio is 272.00%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Merck & Co., Inc.

In other news, EVP David Michael Williams sold 52,847 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 5th. The shares were 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 directly owned 31,716 shares in the company, valued at $4,084,069.32. This represents a 62.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Chirfi Guindo sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $135.00, for a total transaction of $1,350,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 36,613 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,942,755. This represents a 21.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 228,238 shares of company stock valued at $29,977,783. 0.17% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MRK has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Bank of America increased their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $130.00 to $141.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $135.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, July 13th. Scotiabank upped their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $136.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 30th. Guggenheim increased their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $145.00 to $146.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Finally, Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 11th. Fifteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $135.50.

Merck & Co., Inc. 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.