Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) Given Consensus Recommendation of "Moderate Buy" by Analysts

Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) have earned a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" from the twenty-two research firms that are covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. Twelve equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, seven have given a buy recommendation and three have given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price target among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $111.13.

A number of equities analysts have commented on MRK shares. 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 price target for the company. TD Securities lowered shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and cut their target price for the stock from $121.00 to $100.00 in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Citigroup lowered their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $115.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered Merck & Co., Inc. from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and reduced their price objective for the company from $128.00 to $105.00 in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, UBS Group dropped their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $120.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th.

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

In other Merck & Co., Inc. news, SVP Dalton E. Smart III sold 4,262 shares of the business's 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 completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 7,778 shares in the company, valued at approximately $643,707.28. The trade was a 35.40 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Inge G. Thulin purchased 2,833 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 6th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $88.25 per share, for a total transaction of $250,012.25. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 2,933 shares in the company, valued at approximately $258,837.25. The trade was a 2,833.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company insiders own 0.09% of the company's stock.

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

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Midwest Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Barnes Dennig Private Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the first quarter valued at $27,000. Financial Life Planners bought a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC purchased a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Finally, Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Institutional investors own 76.07% of the company's stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

NYSE:MRK traded up $0.52 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $85.23. The stock had a trading volume of 13,806,674 shares, compared to its average volume of 11,972,887. The firm has a market capitalization of $214.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.66, a P/E/G ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 0.40. Merck & Co., Inc. has a one year low of $75.93 and a one year high of $134.63. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $86.94 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $94.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 1.36 and a quick ratio of 1.15.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $2.22 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.16 by $0.06. The business 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%. The company's quarterly revenue was down 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.07 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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

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.