Grandfield & Dodd LLC Sells 16,228 Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

31 May 2026, 08:02 by Amy Steele · The Cerbat Gem

Grandfield & Dodd LLC trimmed its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK – Free Report) by 8.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 168,061 shares of the company’s stock after selling 16,228 shares during the period. Grandfield & Dodd LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $17,690,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Kingdom Financial Group LLC. bought a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $25,000. High Note Wealth LLC raised its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 58.9% in the 4th quarter. High Note Wealth LLC now owns 294 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 109 shares in the last quarter. Tucker Asset Management LLC bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,000. Entrust Financial LLC bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter worth approximately $37,000. Finally, United Financial Planning Group LLC bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $31,000. 76.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Merck & Co., Inc. Trading Down 1.2%

Shares of MRK opened at $118.49 on Friday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 52-week low of $75.40 and a 52-week high of $125.14. The business’s fifty day moving average is $116.39 and its 200-day moving average is $111.46. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a current ratio of 1.30. The firm has a market cap of $292.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.38, a PEG ratio of 2.67 and a beta of 0.18.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK – Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported ($1.28) earnings per share 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 company had revenue of $16.29 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.85 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.22 EPS. Merck & Co., Inc.’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 analysts anticipate that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 5.16 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 8th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 15th will be given a $0.85 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 15th. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.9%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 95.77%.

Merck & Co., Inc. News Summary

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

Positive Sentiment: The FDA granted Breakthrough Therapy designation to calderasib (MK-1084) with Keytruda in a lung cancer indication, a sign the program may move faster and expand Merck’s oncology growth prospects. Article Title
Positive Sentiment: Analyst coverage and recent articles highlighted Merck’s newer drugs, pipeline assets, and M&A options as potential offsets to looming Keytruda patent expiration, reinforcing the bull case for long-term growth. Article Title
Positive Sentiment: Merck has also been drawing investor attention as a trending stock and has outperformed the S&P 500 over the past year, suggesting market confidence remains relatively strong. Article Title
Neutral Sentiment: Merck will participate in the Jefferies Global Healthcare Conference, which could provide an update on strategy but is not itself a major business catalyst. Article Title
Neutral Sentiment: Shareholders backed board nominees, pay, and auditor ratification at the annual meeting, which reduces governance uncertainty but is unlikely to move the stock much. Article Title
Negative Sentiment: The main longer-term concern remains Keytruda’s eventual loss of exclusivity, which could pressure Merck’s biggest revenue driver if replacement products do not scale quickly enough. Article Title

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have commented on the company. Citigroup initiated coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $125.00 price target on the stock. Cantor Fitzgerald boosted their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $116.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 4th. UBS Group boosted their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $130.00 to $145.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, April 13th. Guggenheim boosted their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $122.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 6th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $142.00 price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Monday, March 30th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Merck & Co., Inc. presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $128.18.

Check Out Our Latest Research Report on MRK

Merck & Co., Inc. Company Profile

(Free Report)

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.