Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK Shares Sold by Fifth Third Bancorp

Fifth Third Bancorp decreased its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 3.6% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 600,532 shares of the company’s stock after selling 22,445 shares during the period. Fifth Third Bancorp’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $50,403,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Dakota Community Bank & Trust NA raised its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 3.4% during the third quarter. Dakota Community Bank & Trust NA now owns 3,566 shares of the company’s stock worth $299,000 after purchasing an additional 116 shares during the last quarter. Security National Bank of Sioux City Iowa IA raised its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 3.6% during the 3rd quarter. Security National Bank of Sioux City Iowa IA now owns 3,402 shares of the company’s stock worth $286,000 after buying an additional 119 shares during the last quarter. Investors Research Corp lifted its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 1.3% in the 3rd 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. lifted its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.8% in the 3rd quarter. Trust Point Inc. now owns 14,834 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,245,000 after acquiring an additional 120 shares during the period. Finally, Nicolet Bankshares Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.0% in the second quarter. Nicolet Bankshares Inc. now owns 6,169 shares of the company’s stock valued at $488,000 after acquiring an additional 121 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Merck & Co., Inc. news, EVP David Michael Williams sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $121.91, for a total transaction of $609,550.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 30,838 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,759,460.58. This represents a 13.95% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Richard R. Deluca sold 37,685 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $120.92, for a total value of $4,556,870.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 160,174 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $19,368,240.08. This trade represents a 19.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 320,176 shares of company stock valued at $38,281,735. Corporate insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. 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 report on Friday. Wall Street Zen downgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Sunday, February 8th. Cantor Fitzgerald lifted their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $116.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 4th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 4th. Finally, Wolfe Research upgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $135.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Merck & Co., Inc. currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $123.71.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

Shares of MRK stock opened at $121.39 on Tuesday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $108.80 and a 200 day moving average price of $94.84. The stock has a market cap of $301.29 billion, a PE ratio of 16.67, a P/E/G ratio of 2.27 and a beta of 0.28. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 1 year low of $73.31 and a 1 year high of $123.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 1.44 and a current ratio of 1.66.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 3rd. The company reported $2.04 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.01 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $16.40 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.19 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 45.22% and a net margin of 28.08%.Merck & Co., Inc.’s revenue was up 5.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.72 earnings per share. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.000-5.150 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 7th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 16th will be issued a $0.85 dividend. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 16th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio is 46.70%.

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.