Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. Sells 14,931 Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Key Points

• Resona Asset Management trimmed its Merck stake by 1.7% in the first quarter, selling 14,931 shares and ending with 856,748 shares valued at about $102.7 million.
• Analyst sentiment around Merck remains broadly positive, with firms like Royal Bank of Canada and Wells Fargo reiterating bullish ratings and lifting price targets to $142 and $150, respectively.
• Merck’s recent developments include expanded KEYTRUDA approvals in breast and bladder cancer and a new access agreement for its HIV drug, while the stock was trading near its 52-week high and paid a quarterly dividend of $0.85 per share.

Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. decreased its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 1.7% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 856,748 shares of the company's stock after selling 14,931 shares during the quarter. Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd.'s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $102,729,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. D.A. Davidson & CO. raised its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 4.4% in the 4th quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 576,959 shares of the company's stock valued at $60,731,000 after acquiring an additional 24,576 shares in the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 48.9% during the 4th quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 97,818 shares of the company's stock worth $10,296,000 after purchasing an additional 32,114 shares in the last quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 12.7% during the 3rd quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. now owns 123,366 shares of the company's stock worth $10,364,000 after purchasing an additional 13,940 shares in the last quarter. Campbell Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the third quarter worth $1,866,000. Finally, Norris Perne & French LLP MI increased its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 12.8% in the fourth quarter. Norris Perne & French LLP MI now owns 252,162 shares of the company's stock worth $26,543,000 after purchasing an additional 28,635 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 76.07% of the company's stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed its outperform rating on Merck and set a $142 price target, signaling meaningful upside from current levels. Benzinga report on RBC rating
• Positive Sentiment: Wells Fargo raised its price target on Merck to $150 and kept an overweight rating, adding to the bullish analyst tone around the stock. Benzinga report on Wells Fargo price target
• Positive Sentiment: Merck’s recent KEYTRUDA approvals in breast and bladder cancer broaden the drug’s use in difficult-to-treat cancers and strengthen the company’s oncology franchise ahead of future exclusivity losses. Article on KEYTRUDA approvals
• Positive Sentiment: Merck also reached a new access agreement for its HIV treatment IDVYNSO, improving commercial access and adding another supportive development for the valuation story. Article on HIV access deal
• Neutral Sentiment: Merck is trading above both its 50-day and 200-day moving averages, which technically supports the stock, but the broader picture still includes patent expiry and vaccine-related concerns. Zacks technical analysis
• Neutral Sentiment: A separate research roundup highlighted Merck alongside other large-cap names, but did not introduce a new company-specific catalyst. Top Research Reports article
• Negative Sentiment: Some commentary noted Merck’s recent pullback and continuing investor focus on its post-Keytruda exclusivity outlook, which remains the main long-term risk to the stock. Article on valuation narrative

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MRK has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Scotiabank upped their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $136.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock a "sector outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 30th. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $120.00 target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Monday. Citigroup began coverage on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $125.00 target price for the company. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $142.00 price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Wednesday. Finally, CICC Research began coverage on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Wednesday, June 24th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $138.00 price target for the company. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have given a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $132.11.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Down 2.1%

Shares of NYSE MRK opened at $126.10 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 1.30, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02. The company has a market cap of $311.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.52, a PEG ratio of 2.75 and a beta of 0.19. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12 month low of $76.66 and a 12 month high of $130.29. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $118.27 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $116.06.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported ($1.28) EPS for the quarter, topping 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 firm had revenue of $16.29 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $15.85 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.22 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter 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. As a group, analysts forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 5.19 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 8th. Investors of record on Monday, June 15th were paid a $0.85 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 15th. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.7%. Merck & Co., Inc.'s dividend payout ratio is presently 95.77%.

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.

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.