Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) Hits New 12-Month High - Should You Buy?

Key Points

• Merck hit a new 52-week high, trading as high as $131.59 after positive news flow helped lift the stock above its previous close of $127.63.
• The biggest catalyst was FDA approval of Lipfendra, Merck’s once-daily oral PCSK9 inhibitor, which could become a major new cholesterol treatment and broaden the company beyond Keytruda.
• Analysts remain constructive on Merck, with several raising price targets and the consensus rating sitting at Moderate Buy, supported by optimism around the company’s pipeline and upcoming data readouts.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report)'s share price hit a new 52-week high during trading on Friday . The company traded as high as $131.59 and last traded at $131.1330, with a volume of 1744882 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $127.63.

Key Stories Impacting Merck & Co., Inc.

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

• Positive Sentiment: Merck received FDA approval for Lipfendra, the first and only once-daily oral PCSK9 inhibitor, giving the company a new cholesterol treatment with blockbuster potential and improving its diversification story beyond Keytruda. Reuters: Merck's cholesterol pill gets US FDA approval
• Positive Sentiment: Other coverage said the FDA sign-off could help Merck win share in a large cholesterol-treatment market, with the pill seen as a meaningful alternative to statins and injectables. WSJ: Merck's first-of-its kind cholesterol pill approved
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts also raised price targets and highlighted Merck’s pipeline setup, suggesting investors see additional upside if upcoming HIV and oncology data continue to land well. Yahoo Finance: Merck's HIV Pipeline Nears Key Inflection Point
• Neutral Sentiment: Additional articles referenced continued positive sentiment around Merck’s broader health-care momentum and stock performance, but they largely echoed the same FDA catalyst rather than adding new company-specific news. ETF Trends: Use These ETFs as Health Stocks LLY, UNH, MRK Thrive

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently weighed in on MRK shares. CICC Research initiated coverage on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Wednesday, June 24th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $138.00 price target for the company. Scotiabank lifted their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $136.00 to $155.00 and gave the company a "sector outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 30th. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research note on Friday, May 15th. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $112.00 to $113.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated a "neutral" rating and set a $120.00 target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Monday, July 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $133.94.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 1.06, a current ratio of 1.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $119.79 and a 200-day moving average price of $116.86. The firm has a market cap of $322.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.26 and a beta of 0.19.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported ($1.28) earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($1.47) by $0.19. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 27.55% and a net margin of 13.59%.The firm had revenue of $16.29 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.85 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.22 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 4.9% on a year-over-year basis. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.040-5.160 EPS. On average, analysts expect that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 3.17 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 Wednesday, July 8th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 15th were paid a $0.85 dividend. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.6%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 15th. Merck & Co., Inc.'s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 95.77%.

Institutional Trading of Merck & Co., Inc.

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 254,322,763 shares of the company's stock worth $26,770,014,000 after purchasing an additional 2,185,853 shares during the period. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 1.6% in the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 120,040,168 shares of the company's stock valued at $12,737,504,000 after buying an additional 1,859,990 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 14.8% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 86,435,458 shares of the company's stock valued at $9,098,196,000 after buying an additional 11,156,354 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 60,047,984 shares of the company's stock valued at $6,307,572,000 after buying an additional 249,110 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 44,946,021 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,731,018,000 after buying an additional 359,486 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.07% of the company's stock.

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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