Apella Capital LLC Has $4.42 Million Stake in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Key Points

• Apella Capital LLC increased its Merck stake by 152.6% in the first quarter, ending with 37,137 shares valued at about $4.42 million.
• Merck received a pair of important regulatory wins: the European Commission approved Keytruda plus Padcev for certain bladder cancer patients, and the FDA approved Keytruda combinations with Trodelvy for first-line treatment of PD-L1-positive advanced triple-negative breast cancer.
• Analysts remain generally positive on MRK, with multiple firms raising price targets and the stock carrying a Moderate Buy consensus rating and average target price of $128.72.

Apella Capital LLC raised its position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 152.6% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 37,137 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 22,436 shares during the quarter. Apella Capital LLC's holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $4,422,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Kingdom Financial Group LLC. acquired a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Abound Financial LLC acquired a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Prosperity Bancshares Inc acquired a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. United Financial Planning Group LLC bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the third quarter valued at about $31,000. Finally, High Note Wealth LLC grew its position in 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 acquiring an additional 109 shares during the last quarter. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Trending Headlines about Merck & Co., Inc.

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

• Positive Sentiment: The European Commission approved Keytruda plus Padcev for adults with cisplatin-ineligible resectable muscle-invasive bladder cancer, expanding Merck’s oncology franchise in Europe. European Commission Approves KEYTRUDA Plus Padcev
• Positive Sentiment: The FDA approved Keytruda and Keytruda Qlex, each combined with Gilead’s Trodelvy, as a first-line treatment for PD-L1-positive advanced triple-negative breast cancer, adding another growth opportunity for the drug. FDA Approves Keytruda and Trodelvy for TNBC
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst commentary has also been supportive, with CICC Research initiating coverage at outperform and a price target above the recent trading range, reinforcing bullish sentiment around the stock. Merck Coverage Update
• Neutral Sentiment: Other reports noted that competitor Gilead won EC approval to expand Trodelvy’s label in metastatic TNBC, which is relevant to Merck because Trodelvy is part of the newly approved Keytruda combination, but the net market impact is still unclear. Gilead Wins EC Approval to Expand Trodelvy's Label
• Neutral Sentiment: Several analyst notes were mixed, including Citi’s hold rating and Scotiabank’s buy rating, suggesting the latest move is being driven more by product news than by a major change in analyst consensus. Citi Keeps Their Hold Rating on Merck & Company

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently commented on MRK. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $130.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, April 13th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, June 6th. Citigroup assumed coverage on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $125.00 price objective for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, April 6th. Finally, Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research note on Friday, May 15th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have issued a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $128.72.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

Shares of MRK stock opened at $125.36 on Friday. The business's 50-day moving average price is $115.88 and its 200-day moving average price is $114.23. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12 month low of $76.66 and a 12 month high of $125.96. The firm has a market capitalization of $309.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.31, a PEG ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.21. 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. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported ($1.28) earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 company had revenue of $16.29 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $15.85 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.22 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 4.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.040-5.160 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 5.17 EPS for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 8th. Shareholders 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 yield of 2.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 15th. Merck & Co., Inc.'s payout ratio is presently 95.77%.

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.

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