Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK Stock Sold by Argent Capital Management LLC

Key Points

• Argent Capital Management reduced its Merck stake by 5.1% in the third quarter, selling 8,922 shares and retaining 166,757 shares valued at approximately $24.2 million. Institutional investors collectively own 76.07% of MRK.
• Merck insiders sold 228,238 shares worth nearly $30 million over the past 90 days, while several analysts raised their price targets. The stock carries a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating and a $146.36 average target.
• MRK recently traded at $140.25 and Merck reported quarterly revenue of $16.61 billion, up 5.1% year over year. The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.85, equivalent to an annualized yield of about 2.4%.

Argent Capital Management LLC reduced its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 5.1% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 166,757 shares of the company's stock after selling 8,922 shares during the period. Argent Capital Management LLC's holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $24,231,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the stock. BlackRock Inc. grew its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.5% during the 2nd quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 226,999,837 shares of the company's stock worth $29,169,479,000 after purchasing an additional 1,073,507 shares during the period. State Street Corp grew its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.9% during the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 120,413,256 shares of the company's stock valued at $15,573,754,000 after buying an additional 1,087,583 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.3% during the second quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 86,249,283 shares of the company's stock valued at $11,083,033,000 after buying an additional 1,934,312 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE increased its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 10.5% in the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 30,774,221 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,701,831,000 after buying an additional 2,919,780 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. increased its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 3.5% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 20,546,185 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,162,691,000 after buying an additional 701,249 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.07% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Merck & Co., Inc. news, EVP David Maraldo sold 18,706 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $128.72, for a total value of $2,407,836.32. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 18,212 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,344,248.64. This trade represents a 50.67% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP David Williams sold 52,847 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $128.77, for a total value of $6,805,108.19. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 31,716 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,084,069.32. This trade represents a 62.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 228,238 shares of company stock worth $29,977,783 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.17% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $145.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 20th. Daiwa Securities Group upgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $143.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, August 12th. Argus raised their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $145.00 to $170.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 25th. CICC Research assumed coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Wednesday, June 24th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $138.00 price objective for the company. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $142.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 20th. Sixteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Merck & Co., Inc. has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $146.36.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

Shares of NYSE MRK traded down $4.05 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $140.25. The stock had a trading volume of 4,204,205 shares, compared to its average volume of 10,682,108. The company has a market capitalization of $346.03 billion, a PE ratio of 112.20, a P/E/G ratio of 6.28 and a beta of 0.21. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $142.73 and a 200-day simple moving average of $127.40. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 1 year low of $82.01 and a 1 year high of $156.92. The company has a quick ratio of 1.10, a current ratio of 1.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The company reported ($0.13) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.26) by $0.13. The company had revenue of $16.61 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $16.37 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 4.77% and a return on equity of 16.73%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 5.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.13 EPS. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.660-2.760 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 2.76 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 7th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 15th will be issued a $0.85 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 15th. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.4%. Merck & Co., Inc.'s dividend payout ratio is presently 272.00%.

Merck & Co., Inc. Profile

Merck & Co, Inc is a global healthcare company that develops and markets prescription medicines, vaccines, and animal-health products. The company serves patients, healthcare providers, and customers in markets around the world, with research and commercial operations spanning multiple geographic regions.

Its pharmaceutical portfolio includes oncology, infectious-disease, cardiovascular, immunology, and other therapeutic areas. Key products include Keytruda, an oncology treatment; Gardasil, a human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine; Januvia and Janumet for type 2 diabetes; Bridion for anesthesia-related use; and Winrevair for pulmonary arterial hypertension.

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