Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) Stock Price Up 0.8% - What's Next?

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report)'s stock price traded up 0.8% during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $79.18 and last traded at $77.87. 4,159,180 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 66% from the average session volume of 12,412,550 shares. The stock had previously closed at $77.23.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently commented on MRK. TD Securities lowered shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and reduced their price target for the company from $121.00 to $100.00 in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and reduced their target price for the company from $128.00 to $105.00 in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Cantor Fitzgerald cut Merck & Co., Inc. from an "overweight" rating to a "cautious" rating in a research report on Tuesday. Guggenheim reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $115.00 price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. Finally, TD Cowen cut shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and lowered their target price for the company from $121.00 to $100.00 in a research note on Monday, February 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have assigned a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $109.19.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Down 0.2%

The business has a 50-day moving average price of $82.44 and a 200 day moving average price of $91.79. The company has a current ratio of 1.36, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79. The stock has a market capitalization of $192.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.43, a P/E/G ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 0.43.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $2.22 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.16 by $0.06. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 26.67% and a return on equity of 45.35%. The business had revenue of $15.53 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.59 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.07 earnings per share. Merck & Co., Inc.'s quarterly revenue was down 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts expect that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback program on Tuesday, January 28th that authorizes the company to buyback $10.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to purchase up to 4.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are typically a sign that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

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

In other news, SVP Dalton E. Smart III sold 4,262 shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $82.76, for a total value of $352,723.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now 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 document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.13% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Merck & Co., Inc.

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of MRK. Tallon Kerry Patrick bought a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter worth $365,000. ARS Investment Partners LLC increased its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. ARS Investment Partners LLC now owns 122,933 shares of the company's stock worth $12,229,000 after buying an additional 1,141 shares during the period. Solidarity Wealth LLC bought a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter valued at about $1,860,000. Lmcg Investments LLC grew its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 1.7% in the 4th quarter. Lmcg Investments LLC now owns 114,286 shares of the company's stock worth $11,369,000 after acquiring an additional 1,904 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Trust Co increased its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 11.1% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Trust Co now owns 11,814 shares of the company's stock worth $1,175,000 after acquiring an additional 1,178 shares during the period. 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.