Aprio Wealth Management LLC Has $3.66 Million Stock Position in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Key Points

• Aprio Wealth Management raised its Merck stake by 345.1% in Q4, now owning 34,735 shares valued at about $3.66 million per its latest SEC filing.
• Significant insider selling has occurred recently—insiders sold 320,176 shares worth roughly $38.28 million in the last 90 days, including sales by CEO Robert M. Davis and EVP Jennifer Zachary, with corporate insiders now owning just 0.17% of the stock.
• Company catalysts include a multi‑year Google Cloud AI partnership and an FDA Priority Review for KEYTRUDA (positive), but weakness in Gardasil sales and analyst concerns about Q1 earnings present near‑term headwinds; consensus analyst rating is a "Moderate Buy" with a $128.47 target.

Aprio Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 345.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 34,735 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 26,931 shares during the quarter. Aprio Wealth Management LLC's holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $3,656,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MRK. Chemung Canal Trust Co. grew its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 21.1% during the third quarter. Chemung Canal Trust Co. now owns 76,338 shares of the company's stock valued at $6,407,000 after purchasing an additional 13,285 shares during the period. First Pacific Financial raised its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 14.7% in the third quarter. First Pacific Financial now owns 47,555 shares of the company's stock worth $3,991,000 after purchasing an additional 6,082 shares during the period. Diversified Trust Co raised its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 9.6% in the third quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 207,838 shares of the company's stock worth $17,444,000 after purchasing an additional 18,187 shares during the period. Farther Finance Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 48.9% during the fourth quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 97,818 shares of the company's stock worth $10,296,000 after purchasing an additional 32,114 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Coldstream Capital Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 12.7% during the third quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. now owns 123,366 shares of the company's stock worth $10,364,000 after purchasing an additional 13,940 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.07% of the company's stock.

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

In related news, CEO Robert M. Davis sold 47,434 shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $118.04, for a total value of $5,599,109.36. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 443,602 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $52,362,780.08. This trade represents a 9.66% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Jennifer Zachary sold 121,573 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $119.15, for a total value of $14,485,422.95. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 68,916 shares in the company, valued at $8,211,341.40. The trade was a 63.82% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 320,176 shares of company stock valued at $38,281,735 in the last 90 days. 0.17% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Merck & Co., Inc. News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: Merck announced a multi‑year, enterprise‑wide partnership with Google Cloud to deploy Gemini AI and advanced cloud infrastructure for drug discovery, manufacturing and operations — a strategic move that could improve R&D productivity and long‑term margins. Read More. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Merck won FDA Priority Review for KEYTRUDA regimens in muscle‑invasive bladder cancer — a potential near‑term upsid e for oncology revenue if approved, supporting key growth drivers beyond vaccines. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Regulatory approval momentum: the company secured FDA approval for Idvynso (doravirine + islatravir) for HIV‑1 treatment, and is cited among defensive/counter‑cyclical stock picks — positives for investor sentiment and diversification of approved products. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Progress on M&A: the Hart‑Scott‑Rodino waiting period expired for Merck’s tender offer to acquire Terns Pharmaceuticals, clearing an antitrust procedural hurdle and bringing the acquisition closer to closing — strategic but not immediately earnings‑material. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Vaccines headwinds: reports highlight a sharp slump in Gardasil sales in China and Japan, which pressures MRK’s vaccines revenue into the upcoming Q1 results and raises downside risk to top‑line guidance if the trend persists. Read More. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Analyst expectations: several analyst notes expect a decline in Q1 earnings and flag that Merck may lack the near‑term drivers for an earnings beat — this raises the risk of downside surprise and explains short‑term selling pressure. Read More. Read More.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MRK has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Zacks Research raised shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 17th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $150.00 target price on the stock in a report on Friday, February 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, April 6th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, March 28th. Finally, Wolfe Research raised Merck & Co., Inc. from a "peer perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $135.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. One equities research 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 stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $128.47.

Merck & Co., Inc. Trading Down 0.1%

MRK opened at $111.83 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $276.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.36, a P/E/G ratio of 2.27 and a beta of 0.26. The company has a current ratio of 1.54, a quick ratio of 1.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12 month low of $73.31 and a 12 month high of $125.14. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $118.61 and its 200 day simple moving average is $107.02.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 3rd. The company reported $2.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.01 by $0.03. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 44.57% and a net margin of 28.08%.The firm had revenue of $16.40 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $16.19 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.72 EPS. The company's revenue was up 5.0% on a year-over-year basis. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.000-5.150 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 4.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 7th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 16th were given a dividend of $0.85 per share. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 16th. Merck & Co., Inc.'s dividend payout ratio is currently 46.70%.

About Merck & Co., Inc.

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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