Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK Stock Holdings Decreased by Secure Asset Management LLC

Key Points

• Secure Asset Management LLC cut its Merck stake by 83.5% in the second quarter, selling 21,955 shares and retaining 4,350 shares valued at approximately $559,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds collectively own 76.07% of MRK.
• Analyst sentiment remains positive, with 15 Buy ratings and eight Holds producing a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and a $147.60 price target. Morgan Stanley upgraded the stock to Overweight and raised its target to $179.
• Merck reported quarterly revenue of $16.61 billion, ahead of expectations, while revenue increased 5.1% year over year. The company also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.85 per share, equating to a 2.2% yield.

Secure Asset Management LLC trimmed its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 83.5% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 4,350 shares of the company's stock after selling 21,955 shares during the period. Secure Asset Management LLC's holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $559,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MRK. Brighton Jones LLC increased its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 29.5% in the 4th 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 stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 52.2% during the 2nd quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 11,494 shares of the company's stock valued at $910,000 after buying an additional 3,941 shares during the period. Diversify Advisory Services LLC grew its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 94.1% during the 2nd quarter. Diversify Advisory Services LLC now owns 32,256 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,590,000 after acquiring an additional 15,636 shares in the last quarter. Diversify Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 22.2% during the second quarter. Diversify Wealth Management LLC now owns 38,031 shares of the company's stock worth $3,054,000 after acquiring an additional 6,897 shares in the last quarter. Finally, MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 111.7% during the second quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 681,128 shares of the company's stock worth $53,918,000 after acquiring an additional 359,356 shares in the last quarter. 76.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. Guggenheim increased their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $145.00 to $146.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Morgan Stanley raised shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and increased their target price for the stock from $116.00 to $179.00 in a research report on Thursday, August 20th. CICC Research started coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Wednesday, June 24th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $138.00 target price on the stock. Argus upped their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $145.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 25th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lowered Merck & Co., Inc. from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 19th. Fifteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $147.60.

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

In other Merck & Co., Inc. news, EVP Jennifer Zachary sold 80,315 shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $133.46, for a total transaction of $10,718,839.90. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 45,509 shares in the company, valued at $6,073,631.14. The trade was a 63.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, EVP David R. Maraldo sold 18,706 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 5th. The shares were 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 directly owned 18,212 shares in the company, valued at $2,344,248.64. This trade represents a 50.67% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 228,238 shares of company stock valued at $29,977,783 in the last quarter. 0.17% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

NYSE:MRK opened at $151.85 on Thursday. The firm's 50-day moving average is $133.66 and its 200-day moving average is $123.11. The company has a market cap of $374.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 121.48, a PEG ratio of 6.52 and a beta of 0.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a current ratio of 1.32. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 52-week low of $77.58 and a 52-week high of $156.92.

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 for the quarter, beating 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 business had revenue of $16.61 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $16.37 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.13 earnings per share. The firm'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. Equities research analysts anticipate that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 2.76 earnings per share for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 7th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.85 per share. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 15th. Merck & Co., Inc.'s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 272.00%.

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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