Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) Shares Up 0.8% – What’s Next?

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) shares shot up 0.8% during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $79.18 and last traded at $77.87. 4,159,180 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 66% from the average session volume of 12,412,550 shares. The stock had previously closed at $77.23.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently commented on MRK. Cantor Fitzgerald assumed coverage on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $85.00 target price for the company. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $113.00 to $106.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $105.00 to $96.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Citigroup restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $84.00 target price (down previously from $115.00) on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft downgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and dropped their price target for the company from $128.00 to $105.00 in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Merck & Co., Inc. has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $109.19.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

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 50-day moving average price of $83.13 and a 200 day moving average price of $91.99. The stock has a market capitalization of $196.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.53, a PEG ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 0.43.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $2.22 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.16 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $15.53 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.59 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 45.35% and a net margin of 26.67%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s quarterly revenue was down 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.07 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. announced that its board has approved a share repurchase program on Tuesday, January 28th that authorizes the company to buyback $10.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to reacquire up to 4.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Merck & Co., Inc. news, SVP Dalton E. Smart III sold 4,262 shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock in a transaction on Friday, April 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $82.76, for a total transaction of $352,723.12. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 7,778 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $643,707.28. The trade was a 35.40% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

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

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Tallon Kerry Patrick acquired a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter worth $365,000. Liberty One Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 12.1% during the 4th quarter. Liberty One Investment Management LLC now owns 36,247 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,606,000 after acquiring an additional 3,916 shares during the period. Brady Martz Wealth Solutions LLC purchased a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter worth $1,788,000. Grove Bank & Trust boosted its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 5.6% during the 4th quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 15,288 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,521,000 after acquiring an additional 812 shares during the last quarter. Finally, City Holding Co. grew its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.8% in the fourth quarter. City Holding Co. now owns 23,360 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,324,000 after purchasing an additional 635 shares during the period. 76.07% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other 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.