Orion Porfolio Solutions LLC Has $9.65 Million Stock Position in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Key Points

• Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC trimmed its Merck stake by 9.3% to 114,985 shares, leaving a holding worth about $9.65 million.
• Analysts maintain a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” with an average price target of $125.88, while several firms have upgraded MRK and set targets as high as $150.
• Insiders have been net sellers recently — 320,176 shares (~$38.3 million) sold in the last 90 days, including EVP Richard Deluca and CMO Chirfi Guindo — and insiders now own just 0.13% of the stock.

Orion Porfolio Solutions LLC cut its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 9.3% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 114,985 shares of the company's stock after selling 11,830 shares during the period. Orion Porfolio Solutions LLC's holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $9,651,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of MRK. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 29.5% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 38,278 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,808,000 after buying an additional 8,710 shares during the period. Sivia Capital Partners LLC increased its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 52.2% during the 2nd quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 11,494 shares of the company's stock worth $910,000 after acquiring an additional 3,941 shares during the period. Arrowroot Family Office LLC acquired a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 2nd quarter valued at $215,000. Fourth Dimension Wealth LLC lifted its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 41.1% during the 2nd quarter. Fourth Dimension Wealth LLC now owns 1,530 shares of the company's stock valued at $121,000 after acquiring an additional 446 shares during the period. Finally, Asahi Life Asset Management CO. LTD. lifted its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 5.8% during the 2nd quarter. Asahi Life Asset Management CO. LTD. now owns 18,014 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,426,000 after acquiring an additional 994 shares during the period. 76.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently commented on MRK. Wolfe Research upgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a "peer perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $135.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, February 28th. BMO Capital Markets upgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and boosted their target price for the company from $82.00 to $130.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 18th. Barclays assumed coverage on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Friday, February 20th. They set an "overweight" rating and a $140.00 price target for the company. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $150.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 13th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $125.88.

Insider Activity at Merck & Co., Inc.

In other Merck & Co., Inc. news, EVP Richard R. Deluca sold 37,685 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $120.92, for a total value of $4,556,870.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 160,174 shares of the company's stock, valued at $19,368,240.08. This represents a 19.05% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CMO Chirfi Guindo sold 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $121.88, for a total value of $2,437,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief marketing officer owned 80,615 shares of the company's stock, valued at $9,825,356.20. This represents a 19.88% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 320,176 shares of company stock valued at $38,281,735. 0.13% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Down 3.6%

Shares of NYSE MRK opened at $116.01 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $286.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.94, a PEG ratio of 2.33 and a beta of 0.27. 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 12 month low of $73.31 and a 12 month high of $125.14. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $114.02 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $98.29.

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

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 7th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 16th will be paid a dividend of $0.85 per share. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 16th. Merck & Co., Inc.'s payout ratio is presently 46.70%.

Merck & Co., Inc. Company 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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding MRK? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.