Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) Announces Quarterly Earnings Results

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday. The company reported $2.22 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.16 by $0.06, Zacks reports. The business had revenue of $15.53 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate 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 revenue for the quarter was down 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.07 earnings per share. Merck & Co., Inc. updated its FY 2025 guidance to 8.820-8.970 EPS.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Up 0.6 %

Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock traded up $0.46 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $83.20. The company's stock had a trading volume of 14,235,803 shares, compared to its average volume of 11,917,617. The company has a market capitalization of $209.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.36, a P/E/G ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 0.40. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $87.05 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $95.03. Merck & Co., Inc. has a one year low of $75.93 and a one year high of $134.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a current ratio of 1.36.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 7th. Investors of record on Monday, March 17th were given a $0.81 dividend. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.89%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 17th. Merck & Co., Inc.'s payout ratio is currently 47.16%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. TD Securities cut 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 note on Monday, February 10th. Leerink Partners decreased their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $136.00 to $119.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Guggenheim restated a "buy" rating and issued a $115.00 price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. BMO Capital Markets decreased their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $105.00 to $96.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, Bank of America cut their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $118.00 to $112.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Twelve investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $111.13.

Insider Transactions at Merck & Co., Inc.

In other news, Director Inge G. Thulin bought 2,833 shares of Merck & Co., Inc. 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 purchase, the director now directly owns 2,933 shares in the company, valued at $258,837.25. The trade was a 2,833.00 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Cristal N. Downing sold 2,361 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $88.76, for a total transaction of $209,562.36. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 7,085 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $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 currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Merck & Co., Inc.

An institutional investor recently raised its position in Merck & Co., Inc. stock. Brighton Jones LLC increased its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 29.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 38,278 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 8,710 shares during the quarter. Brighton Jones LLC's holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $3,808,000 at the end of the most recent quarter. 76.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Merck & Co., Inc. declared that its board has authorized a share repurchase plan on Tuesday, January 28th that allows the company to repurchase $10.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to repurchase up to 4.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company's management believes its shares are 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.