Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK Shares Sold by Boston Trust Walden Corp

Boston Trust Walden Corp reduced its position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 2.7% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 453,194 shares of the company’s stock after selling 12,424 shares during the period. Boston Trust Walden Corp’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $54,515,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of MRK. Chesapeake Wealth Management raised its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. Chesapeake Wealth Management now owns 14,740 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,552,000 after buying an additional 87 shares during the last quarter. South Plains Financial Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. South Plains Financial Inc. now owns 15,535 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,635,000 after buying an additional 89 shares during the last quarter. Syverson Strege & Co grew its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.2% during the fourth quarter. Syverson Strege & Co now owns 4,142 shares of the company’s stock valued at $436,000 after buying an additional 90 shares during the last quarter. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV increased its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.4% during the first quarter. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV now owns 23,433 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,819,000 after acquiring an additional 91 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Westside Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 3.1% in the 4th quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,142 shares of the company’s stock worth $331,000 after acquiring an additional 93 shares during the last quarter. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

Shares of MRK opened at $129.34 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.30 and a quick ratio of 1.06. Merck & Co., Inc. has a one year low of $76.66 and a one year high of $130.29. The firm has a market capitalization of $319.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.43, a PEG ratio of 2.68 and a beta of 0.19. The business has a fifty day moving average of $117.04 and a 200 day moving average of $115.27.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported ($1.28) earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($1.47) by $0.19. The company had revenue of $16.29 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.85 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 27.55% and a net margin of 13.59%.Merck & Co., Inc.’s revenue was up 4.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.22 earnings per share. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.040-5.160 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 5.19 EPS for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 8th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 15th will be paid a $0.85 dividend. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.6%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 15th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio is 95.77%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on MRK shares. UBS Group upped their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $130.00 to $145.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, April 13th. Weiss Ratings cut Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research note on Friday, May 15th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, June 6th. Zacks Research raised Merck & Co., Inc. from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 17th. Finally, Bank of America increased their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $130.00 to $141.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have given a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $131.83.

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.