Bellars Harris Wealth Management LLC Makes New $10.26 Million Investment in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Key Points

• Bellars Harris Wealth Management acquired 79,847 Merck shares worth approximately $10.26 million in the second quarter, making MRK about 2.1% of its portfolio. Institutional investors collectively own 76.07% of the stock.
• Analyst sentiment is broadly positive: Merck has a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating from 15 Buy and eight Hold ratings, with an average price target of $144.10. Recent targets ranged as high as $179.
• Merck reported quarterly revenue of $16.61 billion, ahead of expectations, while insiders sold roughly $30 million of stock over the past three months. The company also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.85 per share, yielding about 2.3% annually.

Bellars Harris Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 79,847 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $10,260,000. Merck & Co., Inc. makes up about 2.1% of Bellars Harris Wealth Management LLC's holdings, making the stock its 10th biggest holding.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of MRK. Kingdom Financial Group LLC. purchased a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Abound Financial LLC bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Prosperity Bancshares Inc purchased a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. High Note Wealth LLC increased its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 58.9% during the fourth quarter. High Note Wealth LLC now owns 294 shares of the company's stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 109 shares during the last quarter. Finally, IFC & Insurance Marketing Inc. bought a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. 76.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on MRK shares. Citigroup initiated coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $125.00 price target for the company. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $142.00 to $170.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, August 20th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 19th. Morgan Stanley raised shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and boosted their target price for the company from $116.00 to $179.00 in a report on Thursday, August 20th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $145.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 8th. Fifteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $144.10.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Chirfi Guindo sold 15,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $131.00, for a total value of $1,965,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 46,613 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,106,303. This represents a 24.35% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP David R. Maraldo sold 18,706 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $128.72, for a total value of $2,407,836.32. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 18,212 shares in the company, valued at $2,344,248.64. This trade represents a 50.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 228,238 shares of company stock valued at $29,977,783 in the last three months. 0.17% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

NYSE:MRK opened at $150.67 on Tuesday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 52-week low of $77.58 and a 52-week high of $154.49. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $128.81 and a 200 day moving average of $121.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a current ratio of 1.32. The firm has a market capitalization of $371.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 120.54, a P/E/G ratio of 6.40 and a beta of 0.19.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The company reported ($0.13) earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.26) by $0.13. The firm had revenue of $16.61 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $16.37 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 16.73% and a net margin of 4.77%.The company's revenue was up 5.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.13 EPS. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.660-2.760 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 2.76 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 7th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.85 per share. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 15th. Merck & Co., Inc.'s payout ratio is currently 272.00%.

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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