Thornburg Investment Management Inc. Acquires 59,303 Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Key Points

• Thornburg Investment Management increased its Merck stake by 1.6%, acquiring 59,303 shares to hold 3.79 million shares valued at approximately $486.8 million.
• Analysts remain broadly positive, with 15 Buy ratings and eight Holds producing a “Moderate Buy” consensus and an average price target of $147.60.
• Merck reported quarterly revenue of $16.61 billion, ahead of estimates, and declared a quarterly dividend of $0.85 per share; meanwhile, insiders sold roughly $30 million of stock over the past 90 days.

Thornburg Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 1.6% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 3,787,976 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 59,303 shares during the period. Merck & Co., Inc. makes up 4.7% of Thornburg Investment Management Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 7th largest position. Thornburg Investment Management Inc. owned approximately 0.15% of Merck & Co., Inc. worth $486,755,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Kingdom Financial Group LLC. acquired a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. Prosperity Bancshares Inc bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Abound Financial LLC bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Graney & King LLC increased its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 400.0% during the 2nd quarter. Graney & King LLC now owns 250 shares of the company's stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 200 shares during the period. Finally, IFC & Insurance Marketing Inc. acquired a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.07% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on MRK shares. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $140.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, August 21st. Barclays upped their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $140.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Weiss Ratings raised Merck & Co., Inc. from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research note on Tuesday. Scotiabank boosted their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $136.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock a "sector outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 30th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lowered Merck & Co., Inc. from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 19th. Fifteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $147.60.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP David R. Maraldo sold 18,706 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $128.72, for a total value of $2,407,836.32. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 18,212 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,344,248.64. This represents a 50.67% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP David Michael Williams sold 52,847 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $128.77, for a total transaction of $6,805,108.19. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 31,716 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,084,069.32. This represents a 62.49% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 228,238 shares of company stock worth $29,977,783. Corporate insiders own 0.17% of the company's stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Down 0.8%

NYSE MRK opened at $148.30 on Friday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12 month low of $77.58 and a 12 month high of $156.92. The company has a market capitalization of $365.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 118.64, a PEG ratio of 6.22 and a beta of 0.19. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $131.78 and its 200 day simple moving average is $122.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22, a current ratio of 1.32 and a quick ratio of 1.10.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The company reported ($0.13) earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.26) by $0.13. The firm had revenue of $16.61 billion during 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 revenue for the quarter was up 5.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.13 earnings per share. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.660-2.760 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 2.76 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 7th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.85 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 15th. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.3%. Merck & Co., Inc.'s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 272.00%.

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.

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