Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC Makes New $435,000 Investment in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 5,184 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $435,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Dakota Community Bank & Trust NA raised its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 3.4% in the third quarter. Dakota Community Bank & Trust NA now owns 3,566 shares of the company’s stock valued at $299,000 after purchasing an additional 116 shares in the last quarter. Security National Bank of Sioux City Iowa IA increased its stake in 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 valued at $286,000 after acquiring an additional 119 shares during the last quarter. Investors Research Corp raised 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 valued at $783,000 after purchasing an additional 120 shares in the last quarter. Trust Point Inc. lifted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.8% during the third quarter. Trust Point Inc. now owns 14,834 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,245,000 after purchasing an additional 120 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nicolet Bankshares Inc. lifted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.0% during the second quarter. Nicolet Bankshares Inc. now owns 6,169 shares of the company’s stock worth $488,000 after purchasing an additional 121 shares during the last quarter. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Jennifer Zachary sold 121,573 shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $119.15, for a total value of $14,485,422.95. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 68,916 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,211,341.40. The trade was a 63.82% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Richard R. Deluca sold 37,685 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $120.92, for a total value of $4,556,870.20. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 160,174 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $19,368,240.08. This represents a 19.05% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 320,176 shares of company stock worth $38,281,735. 0.13% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently commented on MRK shares. Wall Street Zen lowered Merck & Co., Inc. from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Sunday, February 8th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $110.00 to $111.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 18th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Guggenheim raised their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $122.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 6th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $92.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 2nd. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $120.93.

Merck & Co., Inc. Trading Down 0.0%

Merck & Co., Inc. stock opened at $119.25 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $295.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.38, a P/E/G ratio of 2.23 and a beta of 0.28. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12-month low of $73.31 and a 12-month high of $122.66. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $107.92 and a 200 day moving average of $94.11. The company has a current ratio of 1.66, a quick ratio of 1.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77.

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

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 7th. Stockholders 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 2.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 16th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s payout ratio is 46.70%.

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.