First Horizon Corp Purchases Shares of 119,621 Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

First Horizon Corp acquired a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 119,621 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,040,000.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MRK. Dakota Community Bank & Trust NA increased its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 3.4% in the 3rd quarter. Dakota Community Bank & Trust NA now owns 3,566 shares of the company’s stock worth $299,000 after buying an additional 116 shares during the period. Security National Bank of Sioux City Iowa IA grew its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 3.6% in the third quarter. Security National Bank of Sioux City Iowa IA now owns 3,402 shares of the company’s stock worth $286,000 after acquiring an additional 119 shares during the last quarter. Investors Research Corp increased its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 1.3% during the third quarter. Investors Research Corp now owns 9,325 shares of the company’s stock worth $783,000 after acquiring an additional 120 shares during the period. Trust Point Inc. raised its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.8% during the 3rd quarter. Trust Point Inc. now owns 14,834 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,245,000 after purchasing an additional 120 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nicolet Bankshares Inc. raised its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.0% during the 2nd quarter. Nicolet Bankshares Inc. now owns 6,169 shares of the company’s stock valued at $488,000 after purchasing an additional 121 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have issued reports on the stock. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $100.00 to $102.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, December 12th. Citigroup lifted their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $95.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 7th. Scotiabank boosted their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 4th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $92.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 2nd. Finally, Wolfe Research raised Merck & Co., Inc. from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $135.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Thursday. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $113.25.

Key Headlines Impacting Merck & Co., Inc.

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

• Positive Sentiment: Merck is reported to be in talks to acquire Revolution Medicines in a deal that could value the biotech at roughly $30 billion — a move that would materially bolster Merck’s oncology pipeline and justify a strategic premium in the stock if completed. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Multiple analysts turned more bullish this week: Wolfe Research upgraded MRK to Outperform with a $135 target and Scotiabank reaffirmed a Buy — plus Citi and UBS published forecasts calling for strong upside. These upgrades/support raise positive sentiment and could attract buying interest. Read More. Read More. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Healthcare sector momentum and positive coverage on Merck’s growth profile (Zacks/MarketBeat pieces) are supporting the stock as investors rotate back into defensive, value-priced pharma names. This macro tailwind can amplify positive reactions to company-specific news. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: The JPMorgan Healthcare Conference is underway and is expected to generate pipeline updates and potential M&A announcements across the sector; this adds event-driven volatility to MRK in the near term rather than a clear directional signal. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Merck publicly urged that U.S. childhood immunization schedule changes be grounded in comprehensive data after the CDC trimmed some recommendations — a policy debate that creates uncertainty around vaccine-related revenues but is not an immediate earnings shock. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Multiple outlets (FT, Zacks) echoed the Revolution Medicines talks; until a deal is announced, takeover reports typically produce short-term swings as investors weigh strategic upside vs. deal risk and price. Read More.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Down 0.4%

NYSE MRK opened at $110.52 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 1.66, a quick ratio of 1.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $99.60 and its two-hundred day moving average is $89.11. The company has a market capitalization of $274.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.60, a PEG ratio of 1.13 and a beta of 0.29. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 1-year low of $73.31 and a 1-year high of $112.90.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 3rd. The company reported $1.94 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.08 by ($0.14). Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 44.54% and a net margin of 29.63%. Equities analysts forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 8th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 15th were issued a dividend of $0.85 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 15th. This is a boost from Merck & Co., Inc.’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.81. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.1%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 44.91%.

Insider Activity at Merck & Co., Inc.

In other news, EVP David Michael Williams sold 8,614 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $83.59, for a total value of $720,044.26. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 24,578 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,054,475.02. This represents a 25.95% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 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.