Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) Raised to Strong-Buy at Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen upgraded Merck from “hold” to “strong buy.” The broader analyst consensus remains “Moderate Buy,” with a $155.74 average price target.
• Analysts have recently raised price targets, including Wolfe Research to $180, HSBC to $172, and Leerink Partners to $161.
• Merck reported quarterly EPS of $2.49, beating the $2.09 estimate, while revenue of $18.09 billion exceeded forecasts and rose 4.7% year over year.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) was upgraded by equities research analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note issued on Saturday, Wall Street Zen reports.

A number of other analysts have also issued reports on the company. Berenberg Bank boosted their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $127.00 to $137.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, September 11th. Wolfe Research raised their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $155.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 25th. Leerink Partners increased their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $127.00 to $161.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, September 9th. HSBC raised their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $150.00 to $172.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, September 10th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $140.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, August 21st. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have given a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $155.74.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

Shares of MRK stock opened at $146.90 on Friday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12 month low of $85.24 and a 12 month high of $156.92. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $146.39 and a two-hundred day moving average of $127.63. The company has a current ratio of 1.32, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22. The company has a market capitalization of $362.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 47.55, a P/E/G ratio of 6.70 and a beta of 0.13.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 29th. The company reported $2.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.09 by $0.40. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 16.56% and a net margin of 3.64%. The business had revenue of $18.09 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $17.33 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.58 earnings per share. Merck & Co., Inc.'s revenue was up 4.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts expect that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 2.84 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Merck & Co., Inc. news, EVP Jennifer Zachary sold 80,315 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $133.46, for a total value of $10,718,839.90. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 45,509 shares in the company, valued at $6,073,631.14. This represents a 63.83% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Chirfi Guindo sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $135.00, for a total value of $1,350,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 36,613 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,942,755. This trade represents a 21.45% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 135,635 shares of company stock worth $18,011,040 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.17% of the company's stock.

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

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Bullseye Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the second quarter worth about $27,000. Curry Webb Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the third quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Horizons Wealth Management bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $30,000. Graney & King LLC increased its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 400.0% during the second quarter. Graney & King LLC now owns 250 shares of the company's stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Montgomery Financial Services LLC acquired a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 2nd quarter worth about $41,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.07% of the company's stock.

About Merck & Co., Inc.

Merck & Co, Inc is a global pharmaceutical company that develops and markets prescription medicines, vaccines, biologic therapies and animal-health products. The company's research and commercial activities span areas including oncology, infectious diseases, vaccines, cardiovascular disease and immunology. Its products include the cancer medicine Keytruda and the Gardasil vaccine.

Founded in the United States in 1891, Merck & Co became an independent company in 1917. It is headquartered in Rahway, New Jersey, and operates internationally.

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