Wealth Alliance LLC Sells 5,224 Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Wealth Alliance LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 31.7% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 11,257 shares of the company’s stock after selling 5,224 shares during the quarter. Wealth Alliance LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $945,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Darwin Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 237.4% in the 3rd quarter. Darwin Wealth Management LLC now owns 307 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 216 shares during the period. Kilter Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the second quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Barnes Dennig Private Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 302.3% in the third quarter. Barnes Dennig Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 354 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 266 shares during the period. Bare Financial Services Inc grew its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 51.9% in the second quarter. Bare Financial Services Inc now owns 366 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Evolution Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the second quarter worth approximately $31,000. 76.07% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

Shares of MRK stock opened at $122.05 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $110.66 and its 200 day moving average is $95.80. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 1-year low of $73.31 and a 1-year high of $123.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 1.66 and a quick ratio of 1.44. The company has a market cap of $302.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.77, a PEG ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 0.28.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 3rd. The company reported $2.04 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.01 by $0.03. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 28.08% and a return on equity of 45.22%. The business had revenue of $16.40 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.19 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.72 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 5.0% on a year-over-year basis. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.000-5.150 EPS. Research analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 7th. Investors of record on Monday, March 16th will be given a dividend of $0.85 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 16th. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.8%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio is presently 46.70%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have commented on the company. Zacks Research downgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Friday, January 9th. BMO Capital Markets upgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their price target for the company from $82.00 to $130.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 18th. Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $115.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 4th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Scotiabank raised their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $124.80.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Richard R. Deluca sold 37,685 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $120.92, for a total transaction of $4,556,870.20. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 160,174 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,368,240.08. This represents a 19.05% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Johannes Jacobus Oosthuizen sold 15,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $121.87, for a total value of $1,828,050.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 21,197 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,583,278.39. The trade was a 41.44% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 320,176 shares of company stock valued at $38,281,735 over the last quarter. Insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

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.