Capital Wealth Planning LLC Grows Stock Holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Key Points

• Capital Wealth Planning LLC boosted its Merck stake by 101.1% in the third quarter, adding 1,604,656 shares to hold 3,191,442 shares worth about $267,858,000, making MRK its 22nd-largest position.
• Other large institutions (e.g., Charles Schwab, DLD Asset Management, Norges Bank, Franklin, Fisher) also increased or established sizeable positions, with roughly 76.07% of Merck stock owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.
• Merck recently beat quarterly EPS estimates ($2.04 vs. $2.01), set FY2026 guidance at 5.00–5.15 EPS, and declared a quarterly dividend of $0.85 per share (annualized $3.40, ~2.9% yield; ex-dividend March 16, payable April 7).

Capital Wealth Planning LLC boosted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 101.1% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,191,442 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 1,604,656 shares during the period. Merck & Co., Inc. accounts for about 1.9% of Capital Wealth Planning LLC's holdings, making the stock its 22nd biggest position. Capital Wealth Planning LLC owned approximately 0.13% of Merck & Co., Inc. worth $267,858,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 9.4% in the 2nd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 53,865,466 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,263,991,000 after purchasing an additional 4,636,183 shares during the last quarter. DLD Asset Management LP raised its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 30.1% during the third quarter. DLD Asset Management LP now owns 47,500,000 shares of the company's stock worth $3,986,675,000 after purchasing an additional 11,000,000 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the second quarter worth approximately $2,858,570,000. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 23.5% during the second quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 27,032,601 shares of the company's stock worth $2,139,901,000 after purchasing an additional 5,135,748 shares during the period. Finally, Fisher Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.3% during the second quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 25,013,697 shares of the company's stock worth $1,980,084,000 after purchasing an additional 567,900 shares during the period. 76.07% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Merck & Co., Inc. news, CMO Chirfi Guindo sold 10,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, February 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $118.41, for a total transaction of $1,184,100.00. Following the sale, the chief marketing officer directly owned 70,615 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,361,522.15. The trade was a 12.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Johannes Jacobus Oosthuizen sold 15,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $121.87, for a total value of $1,828,050.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 21,197 shares in the company, valued at $2,583,278.39. This trade represents a 41.44% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 320,176 shares of company stock worth $38,281,735. 0.13% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Down 0.3%

Shares of NYSE MRK opened at $115.61 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.30, a current ratio of 1.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 52 week low of $73.31 and a 52 week high of $125.14. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $115.26 and a 200 day moving average price of $99.58. The stock has a market capitalization of $285.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.24 and a beta of 0.27.

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 the consensus estimate 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 company had revenue of $16.40 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.19 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.72 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 5.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.000-5.150 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 7th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 16th will be paid a dividend of $0.85 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 16th. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.9%. Merck & Co., Inc.'s payout ratio is 46.70%.

Merck & Co., Inc. News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: Unusually large call buying: traders bought ~672,962 call options on Friday (a ~1,339% jump vs. typical daily call volume), signaling heavy bullish speculation or hedging interest that can lift near-term implied volatility and upside pressure on MRK shares.
• Positive Sentiment: Phase 3 WELIREG data and regulatory filings deepen Merck’s oncology growth story — new Phase 3 results for belzutifan (WELIREG) combos with KEYTRUDA or LENVIMA show meaningful improvement in RCC; FDA filings with priority reviews/PDUFA dates for 2026 could expand label and revenue runway. Merck’s WELIREG Kidney Cancer Trials Deepen Oncology Growth Story
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst upgrades/price-target raises: Wells Fargo raised its price target to $150 and assigned an overweight rating, and Leerink lifted its target as well — both moves increase institutional demand signals and implied upside for MRK. Benzinga Leerink Raises Merck & Co. Inc. (MRK) Price Target
• Positive Sentiment: RBC Capital maintains a Buy rating, reinforcing analyst support and potentially bolstering demand from long-only managers. RBC Capital Sticks to Its Buy Rating for Merck & Company (MRK)
• Positive Sentiment: Bullish price commentary: coverage and price-target pieces (e.g., 247WallStreet) argue broader upside (some scenarios to $150) based on drug pipeline potential, supporting a favorable narrative among momentum investors. Merck Price Prediction: Sac-TMT Drug Potential Pushes MRK to $150
• Neutral Sentiment: Market report on Ovidrel/Ovitrelle highlights expanding fertility market opportunities that could be a modest long-term tailwind for related Merck products, but it’s not an immediate revenue catalyst. Ovidrel or Ovitrelle Market Research Report 2026
• Neutral Sentiment: Misc. coverage items (e.g., stock-picking lists and unrelated biotech moves) mention MRK in broader contexts but are unlikely to materially move the stock on their own. 1 Unpopular Stock That Deserves Some Love and 2 We Avoid ImmunityBio Stock Soars 295% YTD

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have issued reports on MRK. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $92.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 2nd. TD Cowen raised their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $100.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 20th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $135.00 to $150.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday. BMO Capital Markets upgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $82.00 to $130.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 18th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Monday, December 29th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $126.81.

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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