Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) Trading 2.2% Higher – Here’s What Happened

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) shares shot up 2.2% on Friday . The stock traded as high as $89.31 and last traded at $89.56. 2,766,673 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 73% from the average session volume of 10,273,658 shares. The stock had previously closed at $87.60.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MRK has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Hsbc Global Res upgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. HSBC upgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $130.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Citigroup cut their target price on 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. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $113.00 to $106.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, UBS Group dropped their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $120.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Eleven investment 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. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $117.12.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $91.92 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $100.10. The firm has a market capitalization of $225.27 billion, a PE ratio of 13.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 0.35. The company has a current ratio of 1.36, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $1.72 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.85 by ($0.13). The firm had revenue of $15.62 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $15.51 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 26.67% and a return on equity of 45.35%. The firm’s revenue was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.03 EPS. Research analysts expect that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 7th. Investors of record on Monday, March 17th will be issued a $0.81 dividend. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.63%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 17th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s payout ratio is 48.14%.

Merck & Co., Inc. announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, January 28th that allows the company to buyback $10.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to purchase up to 4.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are usually a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at Merck & Co., Inc.

In related news, Director Inge G. Thulin purchased 2,833 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 6th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $88.25 per share, with a total value of $250,012.25. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 2,933 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $258,837.25. This trade represents a 2,833.00 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Cristal N. Downing sold 2,361 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $88.76, for a total value of $209,562.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 7,085 shares in the company, valued at $628,864.60. This trade represents a 24.99 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.09% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Merck & Co., Inc.

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Midwest Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Financial Life Planners bought a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC purchased a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Finally, Promus Capital LLC bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. 76.07% of the stock is currently 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.