Lazard Freres Gestion S.A.S. Increases Stock Position in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Lazard Freres Gestion S.A.S. raised its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 1.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,193,915 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 22,103 shares during the period. Merck & Co., Inc. comprises about 2.3% of Lazard Freres Gestion S.A.S.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 13th biggest holding. Lazard Freres Gestion S.A.S.’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $125,671,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in MRK. DLD Asset Management LP boosted its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 30.1% during the 3rd quarter. DLD Asset Management LP now owns 47,500,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,986,675,000 after buying an additional 11,000,000 shares during the period. Jennison Associates LLC purchased a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter valued at $585,192,000. Invesco Ltd. boosted its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 16.6% during the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 19,844,936 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,665,585,000 after buying an additional 2,821,766 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. boosted its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 20.7% during the 3rd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 15,933,909 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,336,877,000 after buying an additional 2,735,459 shares during the period. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 254,322,763 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,770,014,000 after buying an additional 2,185,853 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on MRK shares. UBS Group increased their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $130.00 to $145.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, April 13th. Barclays started coverage on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Friday, February 20th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $140.00 price target for the company. Citigroup started coverage on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $125.00 price target for the company. TD Cowen increased their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $100.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 20th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, April 6th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Merck & Co., Inc. presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $128.18.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

Shares of MRK stock opened at $114.23 on Wednesday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a one year low of $75.40 and a one year high of $125.14. The company’s 50-day moving average is $115.90 and its 200 day moving average is $109.73. The company has a market capitalization of $282.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.53 and a beta of 0.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a current ratio of 1.30.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported ($1.28) EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($1.47) by $0.19. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 13.59% and a return on equity of 27.55%. The company had revenue of $16.29 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.85 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.22 EPS. Merck & Co., Inc.’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.9% on a year-over-year basis. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.040-5.160 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 5.16 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.