Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK Shares Acquired by Grantham Mayo Van Otterloo & Co. LLC

Key Points

• Grantham Mayo Van Otterloo & Co. LLC increased its Merck stake by 2.4% in Q3 to 6,625,350 shares (about $556.1M), making MRK its 19th-largest holding and roughly 0.27% of the company.
• Merck beat expectations in the quarter with EPS $2.04 vs. $2.01 and revenue $16.40B vs. $16.19B, set FY2026 EPS guidance of $5.00–$5.15, and announced a $0.85 quarterly dividend (annualized $3.40, yield ~2.9%, ex-dividend Mar 16).
• Insiders have been net sellers: two EVPs sold sizable blocks on Feb. 6 and insiders sold 320,176 shares (~$38.3M) over the past 90 days, while institutional ownership stands at ~76% and analysts have a consensus "Moderate Buy" target of $125.88.

Grantham Mayo Van Otterloo & Co. LLC grew its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 2.4% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 6,625,350 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 155,777 shares during the quarter. Merck & Co., Inc. accounts for about 1.6% of Grantham Mayo Van Otterloo & Co. LLC's holdings, making the stock its 19th biggest holding. Grantham Mayo Van Otterloo & Co. LLC owned about 0.27% of Merck & Co., Inc. worth $556,066,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in MRK. Darwin Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 237.4% in the 3rd quarter. Darwin Wealth Management LLC now owns 307 shares of the company's stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 216 shares during the period. Kilter Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the second quarter worth $27,000. Barnes Dennig Private Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 302.3% during the third quarter. Barnes Dennig Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 354 shares of the company's stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 266 shares during the period. Bare Financial Services Inc raised its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 51.9% in the second quarter. Bare Financial Services Inc now owns 366 shares of the company's stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 125 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Evolution Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the second quarter valued at $31,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.07% of the company's stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

NYSE:MRK opened at $115.85 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $286.43 billion, a PE ratio of 15.91, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.24 and a beta of 0.27. The business's fifty day moving average price is $114.20 and its 200 day moving average price is $98.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 1.54 and a quick ratio of 1.30. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12 month low of $73.31 and a 12 month high of $125.14.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 3rd. The company reported $2.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.01 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $16.40 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.19 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 44.57% and a net margin of 28.08%.Merck & Co., Inc.'s revenue for the quarter was up 5.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.72 EPS. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.000-5.150 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently commented on MRK. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $92.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 2nd. Scotiabank increased their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a "sector outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, December 4th. Royal Bank Of Canada began coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Wednesday, February 25th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $142.00 price objective for the company. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $100.00 to $102.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, December 12th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Monday, December 29th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Merck & Co., Inc. presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $125.88.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP David Michael Williams sold 5,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $121.91, for a total transaction of $609,550.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 30,838 shares in the company, valued at $3,759,460.58. The trade was a 13.95% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Richard R. Deluca sold 37,685 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $120.92, for a total transaction of $4,556,870.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 160,174 shares in the company, valued at $19,368,240.08. This represents a 19.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 320,176 shares of company stock valued at $38,281,735 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.13% of the company's stock.

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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