Rathbones Group PLC Has $27.42 Million Position in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Rathbones Group PLC lowered its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 36.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 260,490 shares of the company’s stock after selling 148,771 shares during the quarter. Rathbones Group PLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $27,419,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Lazard Freres Gestion S.A.S. boosted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 1.9% in the fourth quarter. Lazard Freres Gestion S.A.S. now owns 1,193,915 shares of the company’s stock worth $125,671,000 after purchasing an additional 22,103 shares in the last quarter. Northbridge Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter worth $241,000. CapWealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. CapWealth Advisors LLC now owns 328,315 shares of the company’s stock worth $34,558,000 after purchasing an additional 2,335 shares in the last quarter. Atle Fund Management AB boosted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 21.7% in the fourth quarter. Atle Fund Management AB now owns 195,768 shares of the company’s stock worth $20,607,000 after purchasing an additional 34,855 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Intrust Bank NA boosted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 3.5% in the fourth quarter. Intrust Bank NA now owns 24,211 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,548,000 after purchasing an additional 809 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Trading Down 1.1%

Shares of MRK opened at $113.01 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.06, a current ratio of 1.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12-month low of $75.40 and a 12-month high of $125.14. The firm has a market capitalization of $279.12 billion, a PE ratio of 31.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 0.18. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $115.82 and its 200-day simple moving average is $109.92.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported ($1.28) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 analyst estimates of $15.85 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.22 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter 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. As a group, research analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 5.16 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have commented on MRK. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $150.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Weiss Ratings lowered Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research note on Friday, May 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, April 6th. Zacks Research raised Merck & Co., Inc. from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 17th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $142.00 price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Monday, March 30th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $128.18.

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.