Principal Financial Group Inc. Acquires 41,537 Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 0.9% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,751,479 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 41,537 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $610,565,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of MRK. Somerset Trust Co boosted its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.9% in the 2nd quarter. Somerset Trust Co now owns 8,701 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,118,000 after buying an additional 81 shares during the period. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC raised its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.9% during the 2nd quarter. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC now owns 8,747 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,124,000 after acquiring an additional 81 shares during the period. Stronghold Wealth Management L.L.C. raised its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.6% during the 2nd quarter. Stronghold Wealth Management L.L.C. now owns 3,237 shares of the company’s stock valued at $416,000 after acquiring an additional 82 shares during the period. Lederer & Associates Investment Counsel CA lifted its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.9% during the second quarter. Lederer & Associates Investment Counsel CA now owns 9,603 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,234,000 after acquiring an additional 84 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Pine Haven Investment Counsel Inc lifted its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.6% during the second quarter. Pine Haven Investment Counsel Inc now owns 14,273 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,834,000 after acquiring an additional 86 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Merck & Co., Inc. this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Merck and Moderna reported that their personalized cancer therapy met key Phase 3 goals, improving recurrence-free and distant metastasis-free survival for high-risk melanoma patients when added to Keytruda. The result is the first major late-stage win for an mRNA cancer vaccine and strengthens the potential for regulatory approval and broader oncology applications. MRK/MRNA’s Personalized Cancer Therapy Delivers First Phase III Win
• Positive Sentiment: Several Wall Street firms raised their outlooks for MRK: Goldman Sachs increased its price target to $160 and kept a Buy rating, while BMO raised its target to $170 and UBS lifted its target to $175. Morgan Stanley also upgraded the shares to Overweight with a $179 target after the cancer-trial success.
• Positive Sentiment: Investors see Merck’s newer products, acquired assets and pipeline programs as a potential growth cushion against Keytruda’s eventual patent expiration. The company’s expanding portfolio could help diversify revenue beyond its flagship drug. Can Merck’s New Drugs Offer Growth Cushion Ahead of Keytruda LOE?
• Neutral Sentiment: Unusually high options activity indicates heightened investor interest and potential volatility, but it does not by itself establish the direction of the stock.
• Negative Sentiment: RBC Capital Markets downgraded Merck to Sector Perform and set a $150 target, arguing that execution risks and the 2028 Keytruda loss of exclusivity are being underestimated. RBC said near-term catalysts are attractive, but the stock’s valuation leaves limited room for additional gains. Merck upgraded at Morgan Stanley after cancer trial win; RBC downgrades
• Negative Sentiment: Jefferies separately moved Merck from Strong Buy to Hold. The central concern is that the shares have already rallied substantially on the trial news, making the current valuation appear demanding relative to the remaining patent and execution risks.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

MRK opened at $152.43 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $376.07 billion, a P/E ratio of 121.94, a PEG ratio of 6.43 and a beta of 0.19. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $128.09 and a 200-day moving average price of $121.23. The company has a current ratio of 1.32, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12-month low of $77.58 and a 12-month high of $154.49.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The company reported ($0.13) EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.26) by $0.13. The firm had revenue of $16.61 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.37 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 4.77% and a return on equity of 16.73%. The business’s revenue was up 5.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.13 earnings per share. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.660-2.760 EPS. Equities analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 2.77 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 7th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.85 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 15th. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.2%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 272.00%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Merck & Co., Inc. news, EVP Richard R. Deluca sold 20,784 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $130.43, for a total transaction of $2,710,857.12. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 134,703 shares in the company, valued at $17,569,312.29. This represents a 13.37% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Chirfi Guindo sold 15,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $131.00, for a total value of $1,965,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 46,613 shares in the company, valued at $6,106,303. This trade represents a 24.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 228,238 shares of company stock worth $29,977,783 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.17% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently commented on MRK. Jefferies Financial Group lowered Merck & Co., Inc. from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday. Weiss Ratings lowered Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 11th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $142.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday. Morgan Stanley upgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $116.00 to $179.00 in a research note on Thursday. Finally, UBS Group lifted their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $145.00 to $175.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday. Fifteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $144.10.

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.