Violich Capital Management Inc. Has $5.29 Million Holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Violich Capital Management Inc. lessened its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 28.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 50,207 shares of the company’s stock after selling 19,685 shares during the quarter. Violich Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $5,285,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Westside Investment Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 3.1% during the 4th quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,142 shares of the company’s stock worth $331,000 after buying an additional 93 shares during the period. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 26.9% during the 4th quarter. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 444 shares of the company’s stock worth $47,000 after buying an additional 94 shares during the period. Payne Capital LLC grew its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. Payne Capital LLC now owns 10,637 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,120,000 after buying an additional 97 shares during the period. Abound Wealth Management grew its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 6.8% during the 4th quarter. Abound Wealth Management now owns 1,554 shares of the company’s stock worth $164,000 after buying an additional 99 shares during the period. Finally, ST Germain D J Co. Inc. grew its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. now owns 38,645 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,068,000 after buying an additional 99 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. TD Cowen lifted their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $100.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 20th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $130.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, April 13th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of 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. Guggenheim lifted their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $122.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 6th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, March 28th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $128.18.

Insider Transactions at Merck & Co., Inc.

In other Merck & Co., Inc. news, EVP Jennifer Zachary sold 121,573 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $119.15, for a total transaction of $14,485,422.95. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 68,916 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,211,341.40. The trade was a 63.82% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CMO Chirfi Guindo sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $118.41, for a total value of $1,184,100.00. Following the sale, the chief marketing officer directly owned 70,615 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,361,522.15. This trade represents a 12.40% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 0.17% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:MRK opened at $112.22 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $277.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.61, a P/E/G ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 0.18. The company has a quick ratio of 1.30, a current ratio of 1.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 52 week low of $73.31 and a 52 week high of $125.14. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $117.07 and a 200-day simple moving average of $108.31.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported ($1.28) EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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 during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.85 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.22 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter 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 forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 5.16 EPS for the current year.

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.