Assetmark Inc. Purchases 22,483 Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Assetmark Inc. lifted its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 14.6% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 176,918 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 22,483 shares during the period. Assetmark Inc.’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $14,849,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Darwin Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 237.4% in the 3rd quarter. Darwin Wealth Management LLC now owns 307 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 216 shares in the last quarter. Kilter Group LLC bought a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 2nd quarter valued at about $27,000. Bare Financial Services Inc raised its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 51.9% in the second quarter. Bare Financial Services Inc now owns 366 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 125 shares during the last quarter. Barnes Dennig Private Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 302.3% in the third quarter. Barnes Dennig Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 354 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 266 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Evolution Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the second quarter worth approximately $31,000. 76.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Merck & Co., Inc. Trading Up 1.8%

Shares of MRK opened at $121.39 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 1.66 and a quick ratio of 1.44. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 1 year low of $73.31 and a 1 year high of $123.33. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $108.35 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $94.54. The firm has a market cap of $301.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.27 and a beta of 0.28.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 3rd. The company reported $2.04 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.01 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $16.40 billion during 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%.The firm’s revenue was up 5.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period 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. On average, equities 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 declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 7th. Investors of record on Monday, March 16th will be paid a dividend of $0.85 per share. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis 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 (DPR) is currently 46.70%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CFO Caroline Litchfield sold 41,997 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $119.61, for a total transaction of $5,023,261.17. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 90,192 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,787,865.12. This trade represents a 31.77% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Richard R. Deluca sold 37,685 shares of the 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 transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 160,174 shares in the company, valued at $19,368,240.08. The trade was a 19.05% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 320,176 shares of company stock worth $38,281,735 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on MRK shares. UBS Group upped their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $105.00 to $130.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 7th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $150.00 price target for the company in a research note on Friday. Citigroup increased their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $115.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 4th. Zacks Research lowered Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Friday, January 9th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $92.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 2nd. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $123.71.

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.