Envestnet Asset Management Inc. Cuts Holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Envestnet Asset Management Inc. reduced its position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 9.3% during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,396,041 shares of the company’s stock after selling 349,341 shares during the period. Envestnet Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $285,030,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Dakota Community Bank & Trust NA raised its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 3.4% during the third quarter. Dakota Community Bank & Trust NA now owns 3,566 shares of the company’s stock valued at $299,000 after purchasing an additional 116 shares in the last quarter. Security National Bank of Sioux City Iowa IA increased its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 3.6% in the 3rd quarter. Security National Bank of Sioux City Iowa IA now owns 3,402 shares of the company’s stock worth $286,000 after buying an additional 119 shares during the last quarter. Investors Research Corp raised its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 1.3% during the 3rd quarter. Investors Research Corp now owns 9,325 shares of the company’s stock valued at $783,000 after buying an additional 120 shares in the last quarter. Trust Point Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.8% in the 3rd quarter. Trust Point Inc. now owns 14,834 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,245,000 after acquiring an additional 120 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nicolet Bankshares Inc. grew its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.0% in the second quarter. Nicolet Bankshares Inc. now owns 6,169 shares of the company’s stock worth $488,000 after acquiring an additional 121 shares in the last quarter. 76.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Merck & Co., Inc. News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: Q4 results beat expectations — Merck reported $2.04 EPS and $16.4B revenue, driven by strong Keytruda demand and growth in newer products; the beat underpins confidence in current cash flows. Business Wire: Q4 results
• Positive Sentiment: Large analyst upgrade: Wells Fargo raised its price target to $135 and moved to “overweight” (~14% upside vs. current levels), which likely helped buying interest today. TickerReport: Wells Fargo upgrade
• Positive Sentiment: High-profile endorsement: Jim Cramer flagged Merck as a favorite pharmaceutical name and spoke positively about its ability to “spread out the wealth,” providing retail-visible support. MSN: Jim Cramer on Merck
• Neutral Sentiment: Other price-target bumps but still “neutral” ratings — Cantor Fitzgerald and Citigroup raised targets to $120 but kept neutral stances (small upside), which offers modest support but no conviction change. Benzinga: PT raises
• Neutral Sentiment: Earnings call / transcripts available — management emphasized Keytruda strength and pipeline progress; transcripts provide detail for investors modeling product-by-product risk/reward. Seeking Alpha: Q4 call transcript
• Negative Sentiment: Cautious 2026 outlook pressured sentiment — management guided FY26 adjusted EPS to $5.00–$5.15 (consensus ~5.86) and revenue to $65.5B–$67.0B (below Street), which sparked earlier selling and trims near-term growth expectations. Reuters: 2026 guidance & patent concerns
• Negative Sentiment: Patent expirations and generics risk — Januvia and other drugs face loss of exclusivity this year, and management flagged that impact; investors should model increased generic pressure into FY26 estimates. CNBC: generics & guidance
• Negative Sentiment: Near-term growth slowdown expected as Merck invests and pursues acquisitions — coverage notes management expects slower earnings growth as it spends on deals and navigates pipeline inflection points. WSJ: slower growth & acquisitions

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

Shares of MRK stock opened at $118.35 on Thursday. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $105.93 and a 200 day moving average price of $92.66. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 52-week low of $73.31 and a 52-week high of $120.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 1.44 and a current ratio of 1.66. The firm has a market capitalization of $293.75 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.26, a P/E/G ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 0.28.

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

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 7th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 16th will be given a $0.85 dividend. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 16th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s payout ratio is 44.91%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have issued reports on MRK. Wall Street Zen upgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, January 31st. UBS Group boosted their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $105.00 to $130.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 7th. TD Cowen raised their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $100.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 20th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $92.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 2nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Merck & Co., Inc. has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $117.87.

Merck & Co., Inc. Company 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.