Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK Shares Bought by Moody Lynn & Lieberson LLC

Key Points

• Moody Lynn & Lieberson increased its Merck stake by 23.3% to 45,104 shares (about $4.75M), in a context where 76.07% of MRK is owned by institutional investors.
• Company insiders sold a total of 320,176 shares worth $38.28M last quarter, including CMO Chirfi Guindo (20,000 shares) and EVP Richard R. Deluca (37,685 shares), each reducing their positions by roughly 19%.
• Merck beat quarterly EPS expectations ($2.04 vs. $2.01), set FY26 guidance of 5.00–5.15 EPS, declared a $0.85 quarterly dividend (2.8% yield), and reported positive pipeline news — notably a Phase 3 cholesterol drug that cut LDL by ~64.6% and an antibody‑discovery pact worth up to ~$838M.

Moody Lynn & Lieberson LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 23.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 45,104 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 8,530 shares during the quarter. Moody Lynn & Lieberson LLC's holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $4,748,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 29.5% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 38,278 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,808,000 after purchasing an additional 8,710 shares during the period. Sivia Capital Partners LLC boosted its holdings 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 purchasing an additional 3,941 shares during the last quarter. Smith Moore & CO. grew its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.0% during the 2nd quarter. Smith Moore & CO. now owns 22,951 shares of the company's stock worth $1,817,000 after purchasing an additional 452 shares during the period. Edgestream Partners L.P. grew its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 16.7% during the 2nd quarter. Edgestream Partners L.P. now owns 35,207 shares of the company's stock worth $2,787,000 after purchasing an additional 5,049 shares during the period. Finally, Brandes Investment Partners LP raised its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 5.3% during the 2nd quarter. Brandes Investment Partners LP now owns 1,912,228 shares of the company's stock valued at $151,373,000 after buying an additional 95,978 shares during the last quarter. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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

In other news, CMO Chirfi Guindo sold 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $121.88, for a total transaction of $2,437,600.00. Following the transaction, the chief marketing officer owned 80,615 shares in the company, valued at $9,825,356.20. This trade represents a 19.88% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Richard R. Deluca sold 37,685 shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock in a transaction 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 sale, the executive vice president directly owned 160,174 shares in the company, valued at $19,368,240.08. This represents a 19.05% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 320,176 shares of company stock worth $38,281,735. 0.09% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

NYSE:MRK opened at $120.26 on Wednesday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 52 week low of $73.31 and a 52 week high of $125.14. The company has a quick ratio of 1.30, a current ratio of 1.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89. The stock has a market capitalization of $297.34 billion, a PE ratio of 16.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.28 and a beta of 0.27. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $117.04 and its 200-day moving average price is $102.55.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 3rd. The company reported $2.04 earnings per share 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 analysts' expectations 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 quarterly revenue was up 5.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.72 EPS. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.000-5.150 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS 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 paid a dividend of $0.85 per share. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 16th. Merck & Co., Inc.'s dividend payout ratio is presently 46.70%.

Key Merck & Co., Inc. News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Merck struck an R&D collaboration with Infinimmune to discover multiple human antibodies, a deal worth up to about $838 million in milestones — expands discovery engine with low upfront risk and broadens immunology/oncology pipeline. Infinimmune, Merck enter into antibody discovery pact
• Positive Sentiment: Late‑stage results: Merck reported an oral cholesterol drug reduced “bad” LDL cholesterol by ~64.6% in a Phase 3 trial — a potential next blockbuster and revenue driver if approved. Merck's drug reduced bad cholesterol by 64.6% in late-stage trial
• Positive Sentiment: Clinical pipeline wins beyond cholesterol: coverage of WINREVAIR Phase 2 success in a tough heart‑failure segment highlights additional mid‑stage upside and may support expectations for future label expansions. How Investors May Respond To Merck (MRK) WINREVAIR Phase 2 Success In Tough Heart Failure Segment
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst support: Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $142 price target, signaling analyst confidence in upside and reinforcing buy interest. Benzinga
• Positive Sentiment: M&A and portfolio building: Merck’s earlier ~$6.7B Terns acquisition and other strategic bets strengthen the oncology/precision‑medicine growth story and support longer‑term revenue visibility. Merck Just Made a Big Bet on a New Cancer Growth Engine
• Neutral Sentiment: Macro positioning: Barclays listed Merck among defensive stocks to consider amid market volatility — may attract safe‑haven flows but is a structural view rather than an immediate catalyst. Barclays names top 4 defensive stocks to weather global uncertainty
• Neutral Sentiment: Sector fund flows: Blackstone closed a record $6.3B life‑sciences fund, positive for biotech/medtech deal activity broadly but not an immediate company‑specific driver. Blackstone closes largest ever private funding investment round at $6.3bn
• Negative Sentiment: Broader market weakness and recent pullbacks: Merck shares dipped with the broader market correction recently, creating near‑term volatility and profit‑taking risk despite company‑specific positives. Merck (MRK) Dips More Than Broader Market: What You Should Know

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MRK has been the subject of several analyst reports. TD Cowen boosted their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $100.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 20th. Barclays initiated coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Friday, February 20th. They set an "overweight" rating and a $140.00 target price on the stock. Zacks Research raised Merck & Co., Inc. from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 17th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday. Finally, Guggenheim raised their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $122.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, February 6th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $127.13.

About Merck & Co., Inc.

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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