Zacks Research Brokers Reduce Earnings Estimates for MRK

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) – Research analysts at Zacks Research decreased their Q1 2026 earnings per share (EPS) estimates for Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report issued on Tuesday, April 1st. Zacks Research analyst S. Ganoria now anticipates that the company will earn $2.29 per share for the quarter, down from their prior forecast of $2.30. The consensus estimate for Merck & Co., Inc.’s current full-year earnings is $9.01 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Merck & Co., Inc.’s Q2 2026 earnings at $2.29 EPS, Q3 2026 earnings at $2.63 EPS, FY2026 earnings at $9.55 EPS, Q1 2027 earnings at $2.45 EPS and FY2027 earnings at $10.26 EPS.

Other research analysts also recently issued reports about the stock. Leerink Partners lowered their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $136.00 to $119.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 13th. TD Securities downgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and dropped their price objective for the stock from $121.00 to $100.00 in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and decreased their target price for the company from $128.00 to $105.00 in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Guggenheim lowered their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $122.00 to $115.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, Citigroup reduced their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $115.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $117.12.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:MRK opened at $86.61 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $91.39 and a 200-day moving average of $99.53. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12 month low of $81.04 and a 12 month high of $134.63. The company has a current ratio of 1.36, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79. The stock has a market capitalization of $218.78 billion, a PE ratio of 12.87, a PEG ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 0.40.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $1.72 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.85 by ($0.13). The company had revenue of $15.62 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.51 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 45.35% and a net margin of 26.67%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.03 earnings per share.

Merck & Co., Inc. declared that its board has authorized a stock buyback program on Tuesday, January 28th that allows the company to buyback $10.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to reacquire up to 4.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 7th. Investors of record on Monday, March 17th will be paid a dividend of $0.81 per share. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.74%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 17th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio is presently 48.14%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Cristal N. Downing sold 2,361 shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $88.76, for a total value of $209,562.36. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 7,085 shares in the company, valued at $628,864.60. The trade was a 24.99 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Inge G. Thulin bought 2,833 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 6th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $88.25 per share, for a total transaction of $250,012.25. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 2,933 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $258,837.25. This represents a 2,833.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.09% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Merck & Co., Inc.

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Kera Capital Partners Inc. increased its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 7.9% in the 1st quarter. Kera Capital Partners Inc. now owns 3,852 shares of the company’s stock valued at $346,000 after buying an additional 282 shares in the last quarter. Centre Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the first quarter valued at approximately $4,949,000. Cullen Investment Group LTD. raised its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 12.4% during the first quarter. Cullen Investment Group LTD. now owns 110,189 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,891,000 after purchasing an additional 12,128 shares during the period. Cacti Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.5% in the 1st quarter. Cacti Asset Management LLC now owns 647,298 shares of the company’s stock worth $57,758,000 after purchasing an additional 3,000 shares in the last quarter. Finally, MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB grew its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 22.4% in the 1st quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 153,317 shares of the company’s stock valued at $13,762,000 after purchasing an additional 28,064 shares during the period. 76.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Merck & Co., Inc.

Merck & Co, Inc is a health care company, which engages in the provision of health solutions through its prescription medicines, vaccines, biologic therapies, animal health, and consumer care products. It operates through the following segments: Pharmaceutical, Animal Health, and Other. The Pharmaceutical segment includes human health pharmaceutical and vaccine products.