RFG Advisory LLC Trims Stock Position in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

RFG Advisory LLC lowered its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 45.9% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 25,838 shares of the company’s stock after selling 21,956 shares during the quarter. RFG Advisory LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $3,108,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. D.A. Davidson & CO. grew its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 4.4% during the fourth quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 576,959 shares of the company’s stock worth $60,731,000 after buying an additional 24,576 shares during the period. Farther Finance Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 48.9% in the 4th quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 97,818 shares of the company’s stock valued at $10,296,000 after acquiring an additional 32,114 shares during the period. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. raised its stake 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 acquiring an additional 13,940 shares during the period. Campbell Capital Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 3rd quarter valued at $1,866,000. Finally, Norris Perne & French LLP MI boosted its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 12.8% during the 4th quarter. Norris Perne & French LLP MI now owns 252,162 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,543,000 after purchasing an additional 28,635 shares during the period. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Merck & Co., Inc. News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: The European Commission approved Keytruda plus Padcev for adults with cisplatin-ineligible resectable muscle-invasive bladder cancer, expanding Merck’s oncology franchise in Europe. European Commission Approves KEYTRUDA Plus Padcev
• Positive Sentiment: The FDA approved Keytruda and Keytruda Qlex, each combined with Gilead’s Trodelvy, as a first-line treatment for PD-L1-positive advanced triple-negative breast cancer, adding another growth opportunity for the drug. FDA Approves Keytruda and Trodelvy for TNBC
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst commentary has also been supportive, with CICC Research initiating coverage at outperform and a price target above the recent trading range, reinforcing bullish sentiment around the stock. Merck Coverage Update
• Neutral Sentiment: Other reports noted that competitor Gilead won EC approval to expand Trodelvy’s label in metastatic TNBC, which is relevant to Merck because Trodelvy is part of the newly approved Keytruda combination, but the net market impact is still unclear. Gilead Wins EC Approval to Expand Trodelvy’s Label
• Neutral Sentiment: Several analyst notes were mixed, including Citi’s hold rating and Scotiabank’s buy rating, suggesting the latest move is being driven more by product news than by a major change in analyst consensus. Citi Keeps Their Hold Rating on Merck & Company

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

MRK opened at $125.36 on Friday. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $115.88 and a 200 day simple moving average of $114.23. The firm has a market cap of $309.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.31, a PEG ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.21. Merck & Co., Inc. has a twelve month low of $76.66 and a twelve month high of $125.96. The company has a current ratio of 1.30, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported ($1.28) EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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 firm had revenue of $16.29 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.85 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.22 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 4.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.040-5.160 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 5.17 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 8th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 15th will be given a dividend of $0.85 per share. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 15th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s payout ratio is presently 95.77%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MRK has been the subject of several recent research reports. Wall Street Zen upgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, June 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, April 6th. CICC Research initiated coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Wednesday. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $138.00 target price for the company. Zacks Research upgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 17th. Finally, Weiss Ratings downgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Friday, May 15th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have issued a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Merck & Co., Inc. presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $128.72.

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.