Ausdal Financial Partners Inc. Purchases 9,731 Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Ausdal Financial Partners Inc. boosted its position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 107.0% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 18,828 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 9,731 shares during the period. Ausdal Financial Partners Inc.’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $1,580,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 29.5% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 38,278 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,808,000 after buying an additional 8,710 shares in the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 52.2% during the second quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 11,494 shares of the company’s stock worth $910,000 after acquiring an additional 3,941 shares in the last quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 10.6% during the second quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC now owns 26,831 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,124,000 after acquiring an additional 2,565 shares in the last quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 15.2% in the 2nd quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. now owns 264,814 shares of the company’s stock worth $20,963,000 after acquiring an additional 34,861 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board raised its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.8% in the 2nd quarter. Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board now owns 18,926 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,498,000 after acquiring an additional 521 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MRK has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets upgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $82.00 to $130.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 18th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $150.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Friday, February 13th. TD Cowen lifted their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $100.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 20th. Royal Bank Of Canada started coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Wednesday, February 25th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $142.00 price target for the company. Finally, Wolfe Research raised Merck & Co., Inc. from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $135.00 price target for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Merck & Co., Inc. has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $126.81.

Merck & Co., Inc. Trading Down 0.2%

Shares of MRK stock opened at $115.35 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 1.30 and a current ratio of 1.54. The company has a market capitalization of $285.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.84, a PEG ratio of 2.24 and a beta of 0.27. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 52-week low of $73.31 and a 52-week high of $125.14. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $115.42 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $100.02.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 3rd. The company reported $2.04 EPS 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 44.57%. The firm had revenue of $16.40 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.19 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.72 EPS. The company’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. Research analysts anticipate that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

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 issued a dividend of $0.85 per share. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.9%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 16th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 46.70%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Merck & Co., Inc.

In other news, EVP Jennifer Zachary sold 121,573 shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock in a transaction on Monday, February 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $119.15, for a total transaction of $14,485,422.95. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 68,916 shares in the company, valued at $8,211,341.40. The trade was a 63.82% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP David Michael Williams sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $121.91, for a total transaction of $609,550.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 30,838 shares in the company, valued at $3,759,460.58. This trade represents a 13.95% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 320,176 shares of company stock valued at $38,281,735 in the last ninety days. 0.09% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.