Douglas Lane & Associates LLC Has $59.56 Million Position in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Douglas Lane & Associates LLC raised its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 4.9% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 565,829 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 26,479 shares during the quarter. Douglas Lane & Associates LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $59,559,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. DLD Asset Management LP lifted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 30.1% in the third quarter. DLD Asset Management LP now owns 47,500,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,986,675,000 after acquiring an additional 11,000,000 shares during the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc raised its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 5.9% in the third quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 20,659,157 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,733,923,000 after purchasing an additional 1,156,112 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. raised its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 16.6% in the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 19,844,936 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,665,585,000 after purchasing an additional 2,821,766 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 20.7% in the third quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 15,933,909 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,336,877,000 after purchasing an additional 2,735,459 shares during the period. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB raised its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.0% in the third quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 10,945,187 shares of the company’s stock valued at $876,600,000 after purchasing an additional 209,759 shares during the period. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Down 0.2%

Shares of NYSE MRK opened at $122.89 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $118.83 and its 200 day simple moving average is $104.20. The company has a market cap of $303.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.49 and a beta of 0.26. The company has a quick ratio of 1.30, a current ratio of 1.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12-month low of $73.31 and a 12-month high of $125.14.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 3rd. The company reported $2.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.01 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $16.40 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.19 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 28.08% and a return on equity of 44.57%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 5.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.72 EPS. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.000-5.150 EPS. On average, research analysts expect 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 announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 7th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 16th were given a dividend of $0.85 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 16th. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.8%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio is presently 46.70%.

Insider Activity at Merck & Co., Inc.

In other Merck & Co., Inc. news, EVP Jennifer Zachary sold 121,573 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $119.15, for a total transaction of $14,485,422.95. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 68,916 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,211,341.40. This represents a 63.82% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Robert M. Davis sold 47,434 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $118.04, for a total transaction of $5,599,109.36. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 443,602 shares in the company, valued at approximately $52,362,780.08. The trade was a 9.66% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last quarter, insiders sold 320,176 shares of company stock worth $38,281,735. Insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Bank of America boosted their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 15th. Cantor Fitzgerald boosted their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $116.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 4th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, March 28th. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $105.00 to $130.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 7th. Finally, Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $120.00 to $125.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, March 20th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $127.59.

About Merck & Co., Inc.

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.