Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) Shares Gap Down - Here's Why

Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) gapped down prior to trading on Tuesday . The stock had previously closed at $80.43, but opened at $76.95. Merck & Co., Inc. shares last traded at $78.16, with a volume of 2,798,986 shares.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MRK has been the topic of a number of research reports. Bank of America reduced their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $118.00 to $112.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. StockNews.com lowered Merck & Co., Inc. from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Leerink Partners reduced their price objective 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. Cantor Fitzgerald initiated coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. They set a "neutral" rating and a $85.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, TD Cowen lowered Merck & Co., Inc. from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $121.00 to $100.00 in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Merck & Co., Inc. presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $111.13.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $195.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.55, a P/E/G ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 0.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a current ratio of 1.36. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $85.01 and a 200-day moving average price of $92.97.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $2.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.16 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $15.53 billion for 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%. The firm's revenue was down 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.07 EPS. Research analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. declared that its board has authorized a share repurchase program on Tuesday, January 28th that permits the company to buyback $10.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to repurchase up to 4.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally an indication that the company's board 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 the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 25th. The stock was 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 of the company's stock, valued at approximately $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 accessible through this hyperlink. 0.13% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Merck & Co., Inc.

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Midwest Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Financial Life Planners bought a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC bought a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Finally, Promus Capital LLC bought a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. 76.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Merck & Co., Inc. Company Profile

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.