Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK Stock Sold by Carolina Wealth Advisors LLC

Key Points

• Carolina Wealth Advisors cut its Merck stake by 97.8% in the third quarter, selling 31,477 shares and retaining just 694 shares valued at approximately $101,000.
• Other major institutional investors increased their holdings, and hedge funds and institutions collectively own 76.07% of Merck’s shares. Company insiders also sold about $30 million worth of stock during the last quarter.
• Merck reported quarterly revenue of $16.61 billion and EPS of $(0.13), beating analyst estimates, while analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus with a $151.92 price target. The company also pays a quarterly dividend of $0.85, yielding about 2.3%.

Carolina Wealth Advisors LLC cut its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 97.8% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 694 shares of the company's stock after selling 31,477 shares during the period. Carolina Wealth Advisors LLC's holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $101,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 23.8% during the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 15,456,039 shares of the company's stock worth $1,858,938,000 after buying an additional 2,969,856 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE boosted its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 10.5% during the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 30,774,221 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,701,831,000 after acquiring an additional 2,919,780 shares in the last quarter. Diamant Asset Management Inc. boosted its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 12,130.3% during the 1st quarter. Diamant Asset Management Inc. now owns 2,068,387 shares of the company's stock valued at $248,806,000 after acquiring an additional 2,051,475 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 263.7% in the 2nd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 2,702,992 shares of the company's stock valued at $347,334,000 after acquiring an additional 1,959,778 shares during the period. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP increased its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.3% in the 2nd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 86,249,283 shares of the company's stock valued at $11,083,033,000 after acquiring an additional 1,934,312 shares during the period. 76.07% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP David Maraldo sold 18,706 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $128.72, for a total transaction of $2,407,836.32. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 18,212 shares in the company, valued at $2,344,248.64. The trade was a 50.67% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Chirfi Guindo sold 15,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $131.00, for a total value of $1,965,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 46,613 shares in the company, valued at $6,106,303. This represents a 24.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 228,238 shares of company stock worth $29,977,783 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.17% of the company's stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

Shares of MRK opened at $145.25 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $358.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 116.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.74 and a beta of 0.21. Merck & Co., Inc. has a twelve month low of $82.01 and a twelve month 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. The company has a 50 day moving average of $146.98 and a two-hundred day moving average of $130.17.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly 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 business had revenue of $16.61 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.37 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 4.77% and a return on equity of 16.73%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 5.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.13 earnings per share. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.660-2.760 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 2.64 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, October 7th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 15th were given a $0.85 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, September 15th. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.3%. Merck & Co., Inc.'s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 272.00%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently commented on the company. Leerink Partners boosted their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $127.00 to $161.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 9th. TD Cowen raised their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $137.00 to $155.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 23rd. Daiwa Securities Group raised Merck & Co., Inc. from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $143.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, August 12th. Guggenheim lifted their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $146.00 to $170.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 8th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $152.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, August 20th. Seventeen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $151.92.

Key Stories Impacting Merck & Co., Inc.

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

• Positive Sentiment: Merck and Moderna reported positive Phase 3 INTerpath-001 results for the personalized melanoma vaccine, intismeran, combined with Keytruda. The treatment reduced the risk of recurrence or death by 42% and also improved distant metastasis-free survival, supporting the long-term potential of the partnership’s oncology pipeline. Doctors call Moderna and Merck cancer vaccine data a major advancement
• Positive Sentiment: The European Commission approved Keytruda plus Padcev as a perioperative treatment for resectable muscle-invasive bladder cancer, regardless of patients’ cisplatin eligibility. The broader label expands the addressable market and represents the EU’s first approval of a PD-1 inhibitor combined with an antibody-drug conjugate in this setting. Merck wins EU approval for Keytruda plus Padcev
• Neutral Sentiment: Despite strong clinical results, the vaccine announcement triggered a “sell-the-news” reaction. The data largely met elevated Wall Street expectations after an earlier leak, limiting the immediate upside for MRK even though oncologists viewed the results as an important treatment advance. Merck and Moderna shares fall on cancer vaccine results
• Negative Sentiment: Investors remain concerned about valuation and Merck’s future revenue concentration in Keytruda ahead of its patent cliff. Analysts have also characterized the recent rally as leaving limited margin of safety, increasing the risk of profit-taking when news is merely in line with expectations. Merck rally leaves little margin of safety
• Negative Sentiment: Erste Group Bank reduced its FY2026 EPS estimate to $2.63 from $2.73 and its FY2027 estimate to $9.38 from $9.47. Separate previews also anticipate a year-over-year decline in quarterly earnings, adding near-term pressure to the shares. Merck earnings preview

Merck & Co., Inc. Profile

Merck & Co, Inc is a global healthcare company that develops, manufactures and markets prescription medicines, vaccines and animal-health products. Its pharmaceutical business focuses on oncology, infectious diseases, cardiology, immunology and other areas of significant medical need. The company serves patients, healthcare providers and institutions in markets worldwide.

Merck's principal products include Keytruda, an immunotherapy used to treat a range of cancers; Gardasil and Gardasil 9, vaccines that help protect against human papillomavirus; and Januvia and Janumet, medicines used to manage type 2 diabetes.

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