Janney Montgomery Scott LLC Sells 132,888 Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Key Points

• Janney Montgomery Scott LLC reduced its Merck stake by 7.3% in Q1, selling 132,888 shares and ending with 1.68 million shares worth about $202 million.
• Merck reported better-than-expected quarterly results, with EPS of -$1.28 versus the -$1.47 estimate and revenue of $16.29 billion, up 4.9% year over year.
• The company also received important label-expansion approvals for Keytruda-based cancer treatments in the U.S. and EU, while analysts currently rate the stock a consensus Moderate Buy with a $128.72 price target.

Janney Montgomery Scott LLC lowered its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 7.3% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,679,664 shares of the company's stock after selling 132,888 shares during the quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC owned 0.07% of Merck & Co., Inc. worth $202,047,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Diamant Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 12,130.3% in the 1st quarter. Diamant Asset Management Inc. now owns 2,068,387 shares of the company's stock valued at $248,806,000 after purchasing an additional 2,051,475 shares during the period. AGH Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 14.7% during the 1st quarter. AGH Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,767 shares of the company's stock worth $333,000 after buying an additional 355 shares during the period. Cornerstone Wealth Group LLC boosted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 4.7% in the 1st quarter. Cornerstone Wealth Group LLC now owns 23,392 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,633,000 after buying an additional 1,051 shares in the last quarter. Nicholas Wealth LLC. acquired a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 1st quarter valued at $1,329,000. Finally, Onyx Bridge Wealth Group LLC grew its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 1.3% in the first quarter. Onyx Bridge Wealth Group LLC now owns 20,346 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,448,000 after acquiring an additional 258 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.07% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have issued reports on MRK shares. Zacks Research upgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note 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 report on Friday, May 15th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, June 6th. UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $130.00 to $145.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, April 13th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $142.00 price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Monday, March 30th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have issued a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Merck & Co., Inc. presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $128.72.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Up 2.3%

Shares of NYSE MRK opened at $128.35 on Friday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12-month low of $76.66 and a 12-month high of $128.78. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $116.08 and its 200 day simple moving average is $114.33. The company has a quick ratio of 1.06, a current ratio of 1.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02. The company has a market cap of $316.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.21.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results 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 company had revenue of $16.29 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.85 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.22 earnings per share. The company's revenue 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, research analysts expect that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 5.17 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 8th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.85 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 15th. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.6%. Merck & Co., Inc.'s dividend payout ratio is currently 95.77%.

Key Merck & Co., Inc. News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Merck announced FDA approval for Keytruda and Keytruda Qlex, each combined with Gilead’s Trodelvy, as a first-line treatment for PD-L1+ advanced triple-negative breast cancer, expanding a major revenue-driving franchise. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Merck also won EU approval for Keytruda plus Padcev in resectable muscle-invasive bladder cancer patients who cannot receive cisplatin chemotherapy, another label expansion that could support future sales. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Merck’s collaboration with Gilead continues to generate attention after positive HIV trial results, helping reinforce confidence in the company’s research pipeline and strategic partnerships. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Merck was highlighted in CNBC’s “Final Trades,” which reflects ongoing market attention but does not by itself change the company’s fundamentals. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Zacks noted that MRK is a trending stock, suggesting elevated investor interest rather than a specific new operating development. Article Title

Merck & Co., Inc. Company 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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