Curated Wealth Partners LLC Sells 127,541 Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Key Points

• Curated Wealth Partners cut its Merck stake by 89.9% in the third quarter, selling 127,541 shares and retaining 14,395 shares valued at approximately $2.09 million.
• Institutional investors own 76.07% of Merck, while analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus with an average price target of $151.92; several firms recently raised their targets to as high as $175.
• Merck shares recently traded at $149.20, near their 52-week high, after the company exceeded quarterly revenue and EPS expectations. The company pays a quarterly dividend of $0.85 per share, representing a 2.3% yield.

Curated Wealth Partners LLC decreased its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 89.9% in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 14,395 shares of the company's stock after selling 127,541 shares during the period. Curated Wealth Partners LLC's holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $2,092,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. BlackRock Inc. grew its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.5% in the second quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 226,999,837 shares of the company's stock worth $29,169,479,000 after purchasing an additional 1,073,507 shares during the period. State Street Corp lifted its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.9% in the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 120,413,256 shares of the company's stock worth $15,573,754,000 after buying an additional 1,087,583 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.3% in the 2nd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 86,249,283 shares of the company's stock worth $11,083,033,000 after acquiring an additional 1,934,312 shares during the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE increased its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 10.5% in the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 30,774,221 shares of the company's stock worth $3,701,831,000 after purchasing an additional 2,919,780 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. increased its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 3.5% in the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 20,546,185 shares of the company's stock worth $2,162,691,000 after buying an additional 701,249 shares in the last quarter. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MRK has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target 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. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 25th. Guggenheim raised their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $146.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, September 8th. Rothschild & Co Redburn boosted their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $140.00 to $145.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, July 6th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $152.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 20th. Seventeen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $151.92.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

Shares of NYSE MRK traded up $1.83 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $149.20. 4,239,329 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 10,591,892. The company's 50-day moving average is $144.91 and its two-hundred day moving average is $128.93. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22, a current ratio of 1.32 and a quick ratio of 1.10. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 1 year low of $82.01 and a 1 year high of $156.92. The company has a market capitalization of $368.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 119.43, a PEG ratio of 6.56 and a beta of 0.21.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The company reported ($0.13) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.26) by $0.13. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 4.77% and a return on equity of 16.73%. The firm had revenue of $16.61 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.37 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.13 EPS. The business's revenue was up 5.1% on a year-over-year basis. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.660-2.760 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 2.66 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, October 7th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 15th were paid a dividend of $0.85 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 15th. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.3%. Merck & Co., Inc.'s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 272.00%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Merck & Co., Inc.

In other news, EVP David R. Maraldo sold 18,706 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $128.72, for a total transaction of $2,407,836.32. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 18,212 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,344,248.64. This represents a 50.67% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP David Williams sold 52,847 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $128.77, for a total transaction of $6,805,108.19. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 31,716 shares in the company, valued at $4,084,069.32. The trade was a 62.49% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 228,238 shares of company stock worth $29,977,783. 0.17% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Merck & Co., Inc. Profile

Merck & Co, Inc is a global healthcare company that develops and markets prescription medicines, vaccines, and animal-health products. The company serves patients, healthcare providers, and customers in markets around the world, with research and commercial operations spanning multiple geographic regions.

Its pharmaceutical portfolio includes oncology, infectious-disease, cardiovascular, immunology, and other therapeutic areas. Key products include Keytruda, an oncology treatment; Gardasil, a human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine; Januvia and Janumet for type 2 diabetes; Bridion for anesthesia-related use; and Winrevair for pulmonary arterial hypertension.

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