Zacks Research Expects Weaker Earnings for Merck & Co., Inc.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) – Analysts at Zacks Research cut their Q4 2026 earnings per share (EPS) estimates for Merck & Co., Inc. in a note issued to investors on Monday, October 13th. Zacks Research analyst Team now expects that the company will earn $2.36 per share for the quarter, down from their prior forecast of $2.40. The consensus estimate for Merck & Co., Inc.’s current full-year earnings is $9.01 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Merck & Co., Inc.’s FY2027 earnings at $10.05 EPS.

Several other research firms have also weighed in on MRK. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $99.00 to $98.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Berenberg Bank cut shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and reduced their target price for the stock from $100.00 to $90.00 in a report on Wednesday, September 17th. Citigroup began coverage on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Monday. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $95.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $97.00 to $90.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Merck & Co., Inc. has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $105.00.

Merck & Co., Inc. Trading Down 0.7%

Shares of MRK stock opened at $84.11 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.17, a current ratio of 1.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $83.76 and a 200 day simple moving average of $81.44. Merck & Co., Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $73.31 and a fifty-two week high of $111.20. The stock has a market capitalization of $210.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.96, a P/E/G ratio of 0.93 and a beta of 0.37.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The company reported $2.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.03 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $15.81 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $15.92 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 41.05% and a net margin of 25.79%. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2025 guidance at 8.870-8.970 EPS.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 7th. Investors of record on Monday, September 15th were given a $0.81 dividend. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.9%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 15th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio is 49.92%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Merck & Co., Inc.

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. DLD Asset Management LP purchased a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the second quarter valued at $2,889,340,000. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 2nd quarter worth about $2,858,570,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 144.6% during the 1st quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 49,229,283 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,418,820,000 after acquiring an additional 29,104,112 shares during the period. Nuveen LLC purchased a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 1st quarter valued at about $991,553,000. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 23.5% in the 2nd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 27,032,601 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,139,901,000 after purchasing an additional 5,135,748 shares during the period. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Merck & Co., Inc.

Merck & Co, Inc is a health care company, which engages in the provision of health solutions through its prescription medicines, vaccines, biologic therapies, animal health, and consumer care products. It operates through the following segments: Pharmaceutical, Animal Health, and Other. The Pharmaceutical segment includes human health pharmaceutical and vaccine products.