Q2 2026 EPS Estimates for Merck & Co., Inc. Raised by Zacks Research (NYSE:MRK)

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) – Zacks Research boosted their Q2 2026 earnings per share estimates for Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report issued on Tuesday, September 24th. Zacks Research analyst S. Ganoria now forecasts that the company will post earnings per share of $2.61 for the quarter, up from their prior estimate of $2.59. The consensus estimate for Merck & Co., Inc.’s current full-year earnings is $8.01 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Merck & Co., Inc.’s FY2026 earnings at $10.13 EPS.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 30th. The company reported $2.28 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.16 by $0.12. The firm had revenue of $16.10 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.87 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 21.99% and a return on equity of 40.69%. The business’s revenue was up 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted ($2.06) earnings per share.

Several other analysts have also issued reports on the stock. Wolfe Research upgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $132.00 to $134.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 11th. Argus upgraded Merck & Co., Inc. to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 5th. Bank of America reduced their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $150.00 to $145.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $140.00 to $125.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $134.58.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

MRK stock opened at $113.69 on Friday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 52-week low of $99.14 and a 52-week high of $134.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 1.22 and a current ratio of 1.47. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $116.70 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $124.00. The company has a market capitalization of $287.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 126.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.60 and a beta of 0.39.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Merck & Co., Inc.

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 3.8% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 85,595,999 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,331,676,000 after acquiring an additional 3,153,333 shares in the last quarter. Royal Bank of Canada lifted its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 12.8% during the fourth quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 14,972,074 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,632,255,000 after purchasing an additional 1,696,151 shares during the last quarter. Capital World Investors grew its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 67.6% in the 1st quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 13,954,017 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,841,233,000 after buying an additional 5,627,923 shares in the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 1.6% in the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 13,551,242 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,477,357,000 after buying an additional 212,852 shares during the last quarter. Finally, DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main lifted its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.2% during the 4th quarter. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main now owns 12,050,924 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,313,741,000 after acquiring an additional 253,981 shares during the last quarter. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, October 7th. Investors of record on Monday, September 16th will be paid a $0.77 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 16th. This represents a $3.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.71%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio is 342.22%.

Merck & Co., Inc. Company Profile

Merck & Co, Inc operates as a healthcare company worldwide. It operates through two segments, Pharmaceutical and Animal Health. The Pharmaceutical segment offers human health pharmaceutical products in the areas of oncology, hospital acute care, immunology, neuroscience, virology, cardiovascular, and diabetes under the Keytruda, Bridion, Adempas, Lagevrio, Belsomra, Simponi, and Januvia brands, as well as vaccine products consisting of preventive pediatric, adolescent, and adult vaccines under the Gardasil/Gardasil 9, ProQuad, M-M-R II, Varivax, RotaTeq, Live Oral, Vaxneuvance, Pneumovax 23, and Vaqta names.