BCS Wealth Management Sells 15,991 Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Key Points

• BCS Wealth Management cut its Merck stake by 50% in the first quarter, selling 15,991 shares and leaving it with 15,965 shares valued at about $1.92 million.
• Merck reported encouraging pipeline and regulatory progress, including positive Phase 3 results for tulisokibart in ulcerative colitis and recent FDA expansion approvals for KEYTRUDA/KEYTRUDA QLEX and CAPVAXIVE.
• Analysts remain broadly constructive on the stock, with a Moderate Buy consensus and an average price target of $128.18; Merck also recently reported better-than-expected quarterly revenue and earnings.

BCS Wealth Management cut its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 50.0% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 15,965 shares of the company's stock after selling 15,991 shares during the period. BCS Wealth Management's holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $1,920,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in MRK. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter worth approximately $3,997,933,000. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 14.8% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 86,435,458 shares of the company's stock valued at $9,098,196,000 after purchasing an additional 11,156,354 shares during the period. DLD Asset Management LP grew its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 30.1% in the 3rd quarter. DLD Asset Management LP now owns 47,500,000 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,986,675,000 after buying an additional 11,000,000 shares in the last quarter. Cardano Risk Management B.V. acquired a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter valued at $1,012,530,000. Finally, Jennison Associates LLC bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter worth $585,192,000. Institutional investors own 76.07% of the company's stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: Merck said tulisokibart met its primary and key secondary endpoints in the Phase 3 ATLAS-UC induction study for moderately to severely active ulcerative colitis, strengthening confidence in a potentially important new immunology asset. Merck's Anti-TL1A Antibody Meets Goal in Ulcerative Colitis Study
• Positive Sentiment: The tulisokibart result adds to Merck’s recent pipeline momentum and gives investors another potential growth driver as the company looks to diversify sales away from Keytruda over time. Merck's bowel disease drug meets main goal in late-stage trial
• Positive Sentiment: Merck also recently won FDA expansion approvals for KEYTRUDA/KEYTRUDA QLEX with WELIREG in kidney cancer and for CAPVAXIVE in higher-risk children and adolescents, reinforcing near-term commercial strength across multiple franchises. Merck (MRK) Wins FDA Expansions, Posts HIV Data, And Ends Lung Cancer Trial

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MRK has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, April 6th. Zacks Research raised shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 17th. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research note on Friday, May 15th. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $142.00 price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Monday, March 30th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, June 6th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $128.18.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

Shares of NYSE MRK opened at $119.71 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $295.66 billion, a PE ratio of 33.72, a P/E/G ratio of 2.60 and a beta of 0.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.30 and a quick ratio of 1.06. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $115.76 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $113.91. Merck & Co., Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $76.66 and a fifty-two week high of $125.14.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported ($1.28) EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($1.47) by $0.19. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 13.59% and a return on equity of 27.55%. The company had revenue of $16.29 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $15.85 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.22 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter 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. As a group, equities analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 5.17 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

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 paid a $0.85 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 15th. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.8%. Merck & Co., Inc.'s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 95.77%.

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.