Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) Trading 0.4% Higher - Still a Buy?

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report)'s share price was up 0.4% during trading on Friday . The stock traded as high as $84.71 and last traded at $83.57. Approximately 1,839,469 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 89% from the average daily volume of 16,212,893 shares. The stock had previously closed at $83.26.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MRK has been the subject of a number of research reports. Leerink Partners decreased their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $136.00 to $119.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Bank of America dropped their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $118.00 to $112.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. TD Securities cut shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and cut their price objective for the company from $121.00 to $100.00 in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Cantor Fitzgerald initiated coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. They set a "neutral" rating and a $85.00 price target for the company. Finally, TD Cowen cut shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and lowered their price objective for the stock from $121.00 to $100.00 in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Merck & Co., Inc. currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $111.13.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Down 0.1 %

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 business's fifty day moving average price is $86.53 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $94.22. The firm has a market cap of $209.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.35, a P/E/G ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 0.43.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly 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 company had revenue of $15.53 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $15.59 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 45.35% and a net margin of 26.67%. The business's quarterly revenue 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. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current year.

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

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Dalton E. Smart III sold 4,262 shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock in a transaction on Friday, April 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $82.76, for a total value of $352,723.12. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 7,778 shares in the company, valued at $643,707.28. This trade represents a 35.40 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Cristal N. Downing sold 2,361 shares of the company's 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 sale, the insider now owns 7,085 shares of the company's stock, valued at $628,864.60. This trade represents a 24.99 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.09% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Midwest Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. Financial Life Planners bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC acquired a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Finally, Promus Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. 76.07% of the stock is 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.