Captrust Financial Advisors Has $103.94 Million Stock Holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Captrust Financial Advisors boosted its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 1.2% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,238,450 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 14,176 shares during the quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors’ holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $103,943,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MRK. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 12.7% in the 3rd quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. now owns 123,366 shares of the company’s stock valued at $10,364,000 after buying an additional 13,940 shares during the last quarter. Danica Pension Livsforsikringsaktieselskab bought a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the third quarter worth about $11,370,000. Danske Bank A S bought a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the third quarter worth about $159,973,000. Stance Capital LLC lifted its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 5.6% in the third quarter. Stance Capital LLC now owns 16,800 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,410,000 after acquiring an additional 890 shares during the period. Finally, San Luis Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 17.7% in the third quarter. San Luis Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 10,573 shares of the company’s stock worth $887,000 after acquiring an additional 1,590 shares during the period. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Merck & Co., Inc.

In related news, EVP Jennifer Zachary sold 121,573 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on 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 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 legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Johannes Jacobus Oosthuizen sold 15,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $121.87, for a total transaction of $1,828,050.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 21,197 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,583,278.39. This represents a 41.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 320,176 shares of company stock worth $38,281,735. Corporate insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have weighed in on MRK. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $100.00 to $102.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, December 12th. Barclays initiated coverage on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Friday, February 20th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $140.00 price target on the stock. Guggenheim upped their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $122.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 6th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $135.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 12th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $92.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 2nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $126.81.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Up 0.4%

Shares of NYSE:MRK opened at $115.84 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $286.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.91, a P/E/G ratio of 2.23 and a beta of 0.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 1.54 and a quick ratio of 1.30. The business’s 50-day moving average is $115.55 and its 200-day moving average is $100.24. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 1 year low of $73.31 and a 1 year high of $125.14.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last released 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. The business had revenue of $16.40 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.19 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 44.57% and a net margin of 28.08%.The firm’s revenue was up 5.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.72 earnings per share. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.000-5.150 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current 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 dividend of $0.85 per share. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.9%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 16th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio is presently 46.70%.

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.