Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK Stock Holdings Increased by Phoenix Financial Ltd.

Key Points

• Phoenix Financial Ltd. increased its Merck stake by 43.8% in the fourth quarter, buying 19,745 additional shares and bringing its total holdings to 64,806 shares valued at about $6.87 million.
• Several other institutional investors also boosted positions in Merck, and 76.07% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutions, signaling continued institutional interest.
• Analyst sentiment remains mostly positive: Merck has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” with a consensus price target of $128.18, while the stock recently traded around $113.21 after a 0.2% decline.

Phoenix Financial Ltd. lifted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 43.8% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 64,806 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 19,745 shares during the quarter. Phoenix Financial Ltd.'s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $6,873,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in MRK. DLD Asset Management LP lifted its position in shares of 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 worth $3,986,675,000 after purchasing an additional 11,000,000 shares in the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $585,192,000. Invesco Ltd. raised its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 16.6% during the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 19,844,936 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,665,585,000 after acquiring an additional 2,821,766 shares in the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 20.7% during the third quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 15,933,909 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,336,877,000 after acquiring an additional 2,735,459 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 254,322,763 shares of the company's stock valued at $26,770,014,000 after acquiring an additional 2,185,853 shares in the last quarter. 76.07% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Zacks Research raised shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 17th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, March 28th. Barclays started 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. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $150.00 to $145.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 1st. Finally, Citigroup started coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $125.00 target price on the stock. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $128.18.

Merck & Co., Inc. Trading Down 0.2%

NYSE:MRK opened at $113.21 on Friday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12 month low of $73.31 and a 12 month high of $125.14. The firm has a market cap of $279.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.89, a P/E/G ratio of 2.55 and a beta of 0.18. 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's 50 day moving average is $116.18 and its 200-day moving average is $109.19.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported ($1.28) EPS for the quarter, beating 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 for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.85 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.22 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 4.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.040-5.160 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 5.16 EPS for the current year.

Trending Headlines about Merck & Co., Inc.

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

• Positive Sentiment: Zacks highlighted that Keytruda continues to be a major growth driver for Merck, with strong first-quarter sales and potential upside from new indications and combination therapies in 2026. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Merck is being discussed in a broader biotech/biopharma context, including Veeva’s upcoming summit where Merck will participate in AI and commercial strategy discussions. This is more of an industry event than a direct earnings or pipeline catalyst. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Separate commentary noted that Merck has attracted investor attention on Zacks and that recent share-price performance has been mixed, which may be keeping traders focused on valuation rather than prompting a fresh buy or sell signal. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Another market note said Merck’s short-term momentum has cooled after recent weakness, even though longer-term performance remains strong. That suggests investors are weighing the recent pullback against the company’s solid fundamentals. Article Title

Merck & Co., Inc. 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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