Harvest Portfolios Group Inc. Reduces Stock Holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Harvest Portfolios Group Inc. lowered its position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 10.1% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 670,161 shares of the company’s stock after selling 75,668 shares during the period. Merck & Co., Inc. makes up 1.2% of Harvest Portfolios Group Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 19th biggest position. Harvest Portfolios Group Inc.’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $70,541,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in MRK. United Financial Planning Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $31,000. High Note Wealth LLC raised its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 58.9% during the 4th quarter. High Note Wealth LLC now owns 294 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 109 shares during the last quarter. Tucker Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,000. Wealth Watch Advisors INC acquired a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $34,000. Finally, Dunhill Financial LLC raised its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 83.0% during the 3rd quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 419 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 190 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MRK has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $150.00 target price on the stock in a report on Friday, February 13th. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $130.00 to $145.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, April 13th. Guggenheim upped their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $122.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 6th. TD Cowen upped their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $100.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 20th. Finally, Barclays began coverage on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Friday, February 20th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $140.00 target price on the stock. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $128.18.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

MRK stock opened at $114.23 on Wednesday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 52-week low of $75.40 and a 52-week high of $125.14. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $115.90 and its 200-day simple moving average is $109.73. The company has a quick ratio of 1.06, a current ratio of 1.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02. The stock 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.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported ($1.28) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($1.47) by $0.19. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 27.55% and a net margin of 13.59%.The business had revenue of $16.29 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $15.85 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.22 earnings per share. The business’s revenue 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. Equities research analysts expect that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 5.16 EPS for the current year.

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.