Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK Shares Purchased by Roffman Miller Associates Inc. PA

Key Points

• Roffman Miller Associates Inc. PA increased its Merck stake by 9.3% in Q4, buying 19,717 shares to hold 231,523 shares valued at $24,370,000 (about 1.3% of its portfolio).
• Other large institutions also boosted positions — notably DLD Asset Management added 11,000,000 shares to reach 47,500,000 shares (~$3.99B) — and institutional investors now own 76.07% of Merck stock.
• Company insiders sold a total of 320,176 shares worth $38.28M last quarter, including EVP Jennifer Zachary’s sale of 121,573 shares for roughly $14.49M, leaving insiders with just 0.13% ownership.

Roffman Miller Associates Inc. PA increased its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 9.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 231,523 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 19,717 shares during the period. Merck & Co., Inc. makes up approximately 1.3% of Roffman Miller Associates Inc. PA's portfolio, making the stock its 27th biggest holding. Roffman Miller Associates Inc. PA's holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $24,370,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. DLD Asset Management LP grew its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 30.1% in the third quarter. DLD Asset Management LP now owns 47,500,000 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,986,675,000 after purchasing an additional 11,000,000 shares during the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc grew its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 5.9% in the third quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 20,659,157 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,733,923,000 after purchasing an additional 1,156,112 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. grew its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 16.6% in the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 19,844,936 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,665,585,000 after purchasing an additional 2,821,766 shares during the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 20.7% in the third quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 15,933,909 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,336,877,000 after purchasing an additional 2,735,459 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB grew its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.0% in the third quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 10,945,187 shares of the company's stock valued at $876,600,000 after purchasing an additional 209,759 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.07% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MRK has been the topic of several research reports. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $142.00 target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Monday, March 30th. Bank of America upped their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, December 15th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $135.00 to $150.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, March 12th. Citigroup upped their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $120.00 to $125.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, March 20th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald upped their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $116.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 4th. One equities research 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's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $127.59.

Insider Transactions at Merck & Co., Inc.

In related news, EVP Jennifer Zachary sold 121,573 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $119.15, for a total transaction of $14,485,422.95. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 68,916 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $8,211,341.40. This represents a 63.82% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP David Michael Williams sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $121.91, for a total value of $609,550.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 30,838 shares in the company, valued at $3,759,460.58. This trade represents a 13.95% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 320,176 shares of company stock valued at $38,281,735 in the last quarter. Insiders own 0.13% of the company's stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

NYSE MRK opened at $122.89 on Friday. The business's 50-day moving average price is $118.83 and its 200 day moving average price is $104.20. The company has a current ratio of 1.54, a quick ratio of 1.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89. Merck & Co., Inc. has a twelve month low of $73.31 and a twelve month high of $125.14. The company has a market capitalization of $303.83 billion, a PE ratio of 16.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.49 and a beta of 0.26.

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

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 7th. Investors of record on Monday, March 16th were issued a $0.85 dividend. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 16th. Merck & Co., Inc.'s payout ratio is presently 46.70%.

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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