West Branch Capital LLC Sells 15,875 Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

West Branch Capital LLC cut its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 75.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 5,223 shares of the company’s stock after selling 15,875 shares during the quarter. West Branch Capital LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $550,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Darwin Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 216 shares in the last quarter. Kilter Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the second quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Barnes Dennig Private Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 302.3% during 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 in the last quarter. Evolution Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the second quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Finally, United Financial Planning Group LLC purchased a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the third quarter valued at approximately $31,000. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Merck & Co., Inc. Trading Down 0.2%

NYSE:MRK opened at $120.62 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $298.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.57, a PEG ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 0.26. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 52 week low of $73.31 and a 52 week high of $125.14. The company has a quick ratio of 1.30, a current ratio of 1.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $117.47 and a 200 day moving average of $102.80.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 3rd. The company reported $2.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 net margin of 28.08% and a return on equity of 44.57%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $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 anticipate that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

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

Insider Activity at Merck & Co., Inc.

In other Merck & Co., Inc. news, CFO Caroline Litchfield sold 41,997 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $119.61, for a total value of $5,023,261.17. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 90,192 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,787,865.12. This trade represents a 31.77% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Jennifer Zachary sold 121,573 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $119.15, for a total value of $14,485,422.95. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 68,916 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,211,341.40. This represents a 63.82% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 320,176 shares of company stock worth $38,281,735 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MRK has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Monday, December 29th. Guggenheim boosted their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $122.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 6th. Cantor Fitzgerald upped their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $116.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 4th. 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 report on Friday, February 13th. Finally, Barclays assumed coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Friday, February 20th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $140.00 target price on the stock. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $127.13.

Key Merck & Co., Inc. News

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

• Positive Sentiment: European Commission approves KEYTRUDA (pembrolizumab) plus paclitaxel ± bevacizumab for PD-L1 (CPS ≥1) platinum‑resistant recurrent ovarian carcinoma — this is the first PD‑1‑based option for this patient group in the EU, which can expand KEYTRUDA’s label-driven revenue in gynecologic oncology. European Commission Approves KEYTRUDA
• Positive Sentiment: Merck initiates a pivotal Phase 2b/3 trial of MK‑8748 (Tiespectus) for neovascular (wet) age‑related macular degeneration — a deliberate move into ophthalmology with a novel bispecific Tie2 agonist/VEGF inhibitor that could create a new non‑oncology growth vector if successful. Merck Announces Initiation of Pivotal Phase 2b/3 Trial
• Positive Sentiment: Merck reports positive Phase 3 CORALreef AddOn results for enlicitide decanoate, an investigational once‑daily oral PCSK9 inhibitor — an oral PCSK9 would address a large cardiovascular market and could be a major new revenue stream if regulatory/launch paths succeed. Merck Reports Strong Phase 3 Results for Oral PCSK9
• Positive Sentiment: Detailed Phase 2 CADENCE results for WINREVAIR were released, supporting safety/efficacy progress in respiratory therapy development — incremental pipeline upside but likely a smaller near‑term revenue impact versus KEYTRUDA or PCSK9. Merck Announces Detailed Results From the Phase 2 CADENCE Study
• Neutral Sentiment: Reports that Merck KGaA completed acquisition of JSR Life Sciences’ chromatography business — relevant to the life‑science tools space but this involves Merck KGaA (Darmstadt), not Merck & Co. Limited immediate direct impact on MRK fundamentals. Merck KGaA acquires JSR chromatography
• Neutral Sentiment: Expanded/ongoing collaborations (e.g., Tempus AI mentions) and smaller partner deals referenced in the newsflow — supportive for research/data capabilities but not material near‑term revenue drivers. Assessing Tempus AI Valuation After ALERT Cardiology Trial Results And Expanded Merck Collaboration
• Negative Sentiment: Sector policy risk: Lilly CEO warned against locking drug‑pricing deals into law, arguing it could harm long‑term innovation — renewed pricing/policy debates can pressure valuation multiples across big pharma, including MRK. Lilly Pushes Back on Making Drug Price Deals Permanent

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.