Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. Has $22.74 Million Position in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Key Points

• Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. trimmed its Merck stake by 4.2% in the fourth quarter, selling 9,584 shares and ending with 215,997 shares valued at about $22.74 million.
• Institutional ownership in Merck remains heavy, with 76.07% of the stock held by institutions and hedge funds, and several firms increased their positions during recent quarters.
• Analysts are generally positive on Merck: the stock carries a Moderate Buy consensus, with a target price of $128.18, while recent rating changes included multiple target-price hikes from firms such as Guggenheim, UBS, and JPMorgan.

Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. reduced its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 4.2% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 215,997 shares of the company's stock after selling 9,584 shares during the quarter. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc.'s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $22,736,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 29.5% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 38,278 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,808,000 after acquiring an additional 8,710 shares during the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC lifted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 52.2% in the second quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 11,494 shares of the company's stock valued at $910,000 after acquiring an additional 3,941 shares during the last quarter. Diversify Advisory Services LLC lifted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 94.1% in the second quarter. Diversify Advisory Services LLC now owns 32,256 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,590,000 after acquiring an additional 15,636 shares during the last quarter. Diversify Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 22.2% in the second quarter. Diversify Wealth Management LLC now owns 38,031 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,054,000 after acquiring an additional 6,897 shares during the last quarter. Finally, MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. lifted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 111.7% in the second quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 681,128 shares of the company's stock valued at $53,918,000 after acquiring an additional 359,356 shares during the last quarter. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have issued reports on MRK shares. Guggenheim lifted their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $122.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, February 6th. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $130.00 to $145.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, April 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted 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 note on Monday, April 6th. TD Cowen lifted their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $100.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 20th. Finally, Citigroup assumed coverage on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $125.00 target price for the company. One investment 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 data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $128.18.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock opened at $114.23 on Wednesday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $115.90 and a 200-day simple moving average of $109.73. The company has a current ratio of 1.30, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 1-year low of $75.40 and a 1-year high of $125.14. The stock has a market capitalization of $282.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.18, a PEG ratio of 2.53 and a beta of 0.18.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported ($1.28) earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates 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 business 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 earnings per share. Merck & Co., Inc.'s revenue for the quarter was up 4.9% on a year-over-year basis. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.040-5.160 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 5.16 earnings per share for the current year.

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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