<div id="readability-page-1"><p>Modern Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of  Merck &amp; Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 61.2% in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities &amp; Exchange Commission. The firm owned 33,675 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 12,788 shares during the quarter. Modern Wealth Management LLC's holdings in Merck &amp; Co., Inc. were worth $2,826,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.</p><div><p><span></span><span>Get <strong>Merck &amp; Co., Inc.</strong> alerts:</span></p></div><ul><li>3 Undervalued Names Too Cheap to Ignore</li></ul><p>A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in  Merck &amp; Co., Inc. by 9.4% in the 2nd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 53,865,466 shares of the company's stock worth $4,263,991,000 after acquiring an additional 4,636,183 shares during the period.  DLD Asset Management LP acquired a new stake in shares of  Merck &amp; Co., Inc. in the second quarter valued at about $2,889,340,000.  Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of  Merck &amp; Co., Inc. in the second quarter valued at about $2,858,570,000.  Franklin Resources Inc. increased its stake in shares of  Merck &amp; Co., Inc. by 23.5% in the second quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 27,032,601 shares of the company's stock worth $2,139,901,000 after purchasing an additional 5,135,748 shares during the period.  Finally, Fisher Asset Management LLC increased its stake in shares of  Merck &amp; Co., Inc. by 2.3% in the second quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 25,013,697 shares of the company's stock worth $1,980,084,000 after purchasing an additional 567,900 shares during the period. Institutional investors own  76.07% of the company's stock. </p><h2>Merck &amp; Co., Inc. Stock Down 0.2%</h2><p>Shares of MRK stock opened at $115.85 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $286.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.91, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.24 and a beta of 0.27. Merck &amp; Co., Inc. has a one year low of $73.31 and a one year high of $125.14. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $114.20 and a 200 day moving average price of $98.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 1.54 and a quick ratio of 1.30. </p><ul><li>3 “Forever Stocks” to Hold When the Market Won’t Sit Still</li></ul><p>Merck &amp; Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly 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 firm had revenue of $16.40 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.19 billion. Merck &amp; Co., Inc. had a net margin of 28.08% and a return on equity of 44.57%. The business's revenue was up 5.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.72 earnings per share. Merck &amp; Co., Inc. has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.000-5.150 EPS.  Analysts predict that  Merck &amp; Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current year. </p><h2>Merck &amp; Co., Inc. Announces Dividend</h2><p>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 $0.85 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 16th. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.9%. Merck &amp; Co., Inc.'s payout ratio is presently 46.70%. </p><h2>Insiders Place Their Bets</h2><ul><li>This ETF Is Proof That the Healthcare Rebound Is Real</li></ul><p>In related news, EVP Richard R. Deluca sold 37,685 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $120.92, for a total value of $4,556,870.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 160,174 shares of the company's stock, valued at $19,368,240.08. This represents a 19.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Johannes Jacobus Oosthuizen sold 15,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $121.87, for a total transaction of $1,828,050.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 21,197 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,583,278.39. This represents a 41.44% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 320,176 shares of company stock valued at $38,281,735 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own  0.13% of the company's stock. </p><h2>Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades</h2><p>Several brokerages recently weighed in on MRK. Barclays began coverage on Merck &amp; Co., Inc. in a research note on Friday, February 20th. They set an &#34;overweight&#34; rating and a $140.00 target price for the company. Scotiabank increased their price objective on Merck &amp; Co., Inc. from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a &#34;sector outperform&#34; rating in a research report on Thursday, December 4th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Merck &amp; Co., Inc. from a &#34;buy&#34; rating to a &#34;hold&#34; rating in a research note on Saturday, February 28th. Zacks Research lowered shares of Merck &amp; Co., Inc. from a &#34;hold&#34; rating to a &#34;strong sell&#34; rating in a research report on Friday, January 9th. Finally, Guggenheim increased their price target on shares of Merck &amp; Co., Inc. from $122.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a &#34;buy&#34; rating in a report on Friday, February 6th. One analyst  has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have given a Buy rating, six have assigned  a Hold rating and one  has assigned  a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of &#34;Moderate Buy&#34; and a consensus price target of $125.88.</p><p><b>Get Our Latest Research Report on Merck &amp; Co., Inc.</b></p><h2>Merck &amp; Co., Inc. Company Profile</h2> (Free Report)<p>Merck &amp; 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.  </p><p>Founded in the late 19th century as the U.S.</p><h2>Further Reading</h2><ul><li>Five stocks we like better than Merck &amp; Co., Inc.</li><li>“I just bought 10,000 shares of a $5 stock…”</li><li>Buffett, Gates and Bezos Quietly Dumping Stocks—Here's Why</li><li>How JPMorgan's $8,000 Gold Call Will Leave Most Retirement Accounts Behind</li><li>Silver Is the New Oil—And the World’s Running Dry</li><li>Nvidia CEO Issues Bold Tesla Call</li></ul><p><strong>Want to see what other hedge funds are holding MRK?</strong> Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Merck &amp; Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report).</p><p><img src="https://imageproxy.pbkrs.com/https://www.marketbeat.com/scripts/SECFilingChart.ashx/query-UHJlZml4PU5ZU0UmU3ltYm9sPU1SSw?x-oss-process=image/auto-orient,1/interlace,1/resize,w_1440,h_1440/quality,q_95/format,jpg" width="650" height="350" original-src="https://imageproxy.pbkrs.com/https://www.marketbeat.com/scripts/SECFilingChart.ashx/query-UHJlZml4PU5ZU0UmU3ltYm9sPU1SSw"/></p><p><em>This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.</em></p><h2>Should You Invest $1,000 in Merck &amp; Co., Inc. Right Now?</h2><p>Before you consider Merck &amp; Co., Inc., you'll want to hear this.</p><p>MarketBeat keeps track of Wall Street's top-rated and best performing research analysts and the stocks they recommend to their clients on a daily basis. MarketBeat has identified the five stocks that top analysts are quietly whispering to their clients to buy now before the broader market catches on... and Merck &amp; Co., Inc. wasn't on the list.</p><p>While Merck &amp; Co., Inc. currently has a Moderate Buy rating among analysts, top-rated analysts believe these five stocks are better buys.</p><p>View The Five Stocks Here</p>                  </div>

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<p>Modern Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 61.2% in Q3, owning 33,675 shares valued at $2.83 million. Other institutional investors also raised their holdings. Merck's stock opened at $115.85, with a market cap of $286.43 billion. The company reported Q4 earnings of $2.04 per share, exceeding estimates, and announced a quarterly dividend of $0.85. Insiders have sold shares recently, indicating changes in ownership.</p>

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Modern Wealth Management LLC Has $2.83 Million Position in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK