Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) Shares Down 0.8% – Here’s What Happened

by · The Markets Daily

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK – Get Free Report)’s share price fell 0.8% during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as low as $100.52 and last traded at $101.06. 1,608,212 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 82% from the average session volume of 8,828,079 shares. The stock had previously closed at $101.87.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the company. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $155.00 price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $110.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday. Wolfe Research upgraded Merck & Co., Inc. to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. UBS Group reduced their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $142.00 to $136.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets cut their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $150.00 to $136.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and four have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Merck & Co., Inc. presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $129.93.

Read Our Latest Stock Analysis on MRK

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

The business’s 50 day moving average price is $112.00 and its 200-day moving average price is $120.64. The company has a quick ratio of 1.22, a current ratio of 1.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80. The company has a market cap of $257.18 billion, a PE ratio of 21.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 0.40.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK – Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.50 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $16.66 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.47 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 37.32% and a net margin of 19.23%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.13 earnings per share. As a group, analysts forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 7.75 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Merck & Co., Inc.

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. purchased a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $39,000. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 121.8% during the second quarter. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC now owns 326 shares of the company’s stock worth $40,000 after buying an additional 179 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the second quarter worth $42,000. Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 47.5% during the 3rd quarter. Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC now owns 379 shares of the company’s stock valued at $43,000 after purchasing an additional 122 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Reston Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 3rd quarter valued at $43,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Company Profile

(Get Free Report)

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.

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