Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC Sells 49,784 Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Key Points

• Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC trimmed its Merck stake by 29.6%, selling 49,784 shares in Q4 and ending the period with 118,175 shares worth about $12.54 million.
• Analyst sentiment is constructive: the consensus rating is a “Moderate Buy” with an average price target of $128.47 and several firms raising ratings/targets (e.g., Wells Fargo to $150, UBS to $145).
• Merck has mixed near‑term catalysts—signing a multi‑year AI/cloud partnership with Google and winning FDA Priority Review for KEYTRUDA in bladder cancer, but facing Gardasil sales weakness and analyst expectations of a potential Q1 earnings decline.

Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 29.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 118,175 shares of the company's stock after selling 49,784 shares during the quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC's holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $12,541,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MRK. Westside Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 3.1% during the fourth quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,142 shares of the company's stock valued at $331,000 after purchasing an additional 93 shares in the last quarter. Payne Capital LLC lifted its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Payne Capital LLC now owns 10,637 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,120,000 after purchasing an additional 97 shares in the last quarter. Abound Wealth Management lifted its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 6.8% during the fourth quarter. Abound Wealth Management now owns 1,554 shares of the company's stock valued at $164,000 after purchasing an additional 99 shares in the last quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. lifted its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. now owns 38,645 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,068,000 after purchasing an additional 99 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mattern Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. Mattern Wealth Management LLC now owns 6,033 shares of the company's stock valued at $635,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MRK has been the topic of several analyst reports. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, March 28th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $135.00 to $150.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, March 12th. Wolfe Research raised shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a "peer perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $135.00 price target on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 8th. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $130.00 to $145.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, April 13th. Finally, TD Cowen lifted their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $100.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 20th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $128.47.

Merck & Co., Inc. News Summary

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.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:MRK opened at $111.83 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 1.30 and a current ratio of 1.54. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $118.61 and a 200 day moving average price of $107.02. Merck & Co., Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $73.31 and a fifty-two week high of $125.14. The firm has a market cap of $276.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.36, a P/E/G ratio of 2.27 and a beta of 0.26.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 3rd. The company reported $2.04 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.01 by $0.03. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 28.08% and a return on equity of 44.57%. The firm had revenue of $16.40 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.19 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.72 earnings per share. Merck & Co., Inc.'s revenue for the quarter 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, sell-side analysts expect that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 4.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

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

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Richard R. Deluca sold 37,685 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $120.92, for a total transaction of $4,556,870.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 160,174 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,368,240.08. This represents a 19.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Robert M. Davis sold 47,434 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $118.04, for a total transaction of $5,599,109.36. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 443,602 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $52,362,780.08. This represents a 9.66% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 320,176 shares of company stock valued at $38,281,735 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.17% of the company's stock.

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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