Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. Has $733.85 Million Stake in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Key Points

• Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group reduced its Merck stake by 5.4% in Q4 to 6,971,801 shares, worth about $733.85 million.
• Institutional investors own 76.07% of Merck, with several funds materially increasing positions (e.g., DLD Asset Management now holds 47.5 million shares, ~$3.99 billion).
• Analysts have a consensus "Moderate Buy" with an average price target of $127.59; Merck beat Q4 EPS estimates, set FY2026 guidance of 5.000–5.150 EPS, and pays a $3.40 annual dividend (~2.8% yield).

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. decreased its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 5.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 6,971,801 shares of the company's stock after selling 394,387 shares during the quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. owned 0.28% of Merck & Co., Inc. worth $733,852,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of MRK. DLD Asset Management LP raised its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 30.1% in the 3rd 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. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 192.7% in the 3rd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 5,496,664 shares of the company's stock worth $461,335,000 after purchasing an additional 3,618,532 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. raised its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 16.6% in the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 19,844,936 shares of the company's stock worth $1,665,585,000 after purchasing an additional 2,821,766 shares in the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 20.7% in the 3rd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 15,933,909 shares of the company's stock worth $1,336,877,000 after purchasing an additional 2,735,459 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Corient Private Wealth LLC raised its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 85.6% in the 2nd quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 4,937,948 shares of the company's stock worth $390,896,000 after purchasing an additional 2,277,088 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.07% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have weighed in on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $142.00 price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Monday, March 30th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $120.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, March 20th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $135.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 12th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $150.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Finally, TD Cowen lifted their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $100.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 20th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Merck & Co., Inc. has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $127.59.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

MRK stock opened at $121.41 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.30, a current ratio of 1.54 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 firm has a market cap of $299.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.68, a P/E/G ratio of 2.46 and a beta of 0.26. The company's 50-day moving average price is $119.05 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $104.65.

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

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 7th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 16th were issued a $0.85 dividend. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 16th. Merck & Co., Inc.'s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 46.70%.

Insider Transactions at Merck & Co., Inc.

In other Merck & Co., Inc. news, CMO Chirfi Guindo sold 20,000 shares of the firm's 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 transaction, the chief marketing officer directly owned 80,615 shares of the company's stock, valued at $9,825,356.20. This trade represents a 19.88% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Robert M. Davis sold 47,434 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $118.04, for a total transaction of $5,599,109.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 443,602 shares in the company, valued at approximately $52,362,780.08. This represents a 9.66% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 320,176 shares of company stock worth $38,281,735. Corporate insiders own 0.13% of the company's stock.

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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