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Morgan Stanley Cuts Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) Price Target to $98.00

Merck & Co., Inc. logo with Medical background

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) had its price target reduced by equities research analysts at Morgan Stanley from $99.00 to $98.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an "equal weight" rating on the stock. Morgan Stanley's price objective suggests a potential upside of 15.92% from the stock's previous close.

A number of other equities analysts also recently commented on the company. Cantor Fitzgerald downgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from an "overweight" rating to a "cautious" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 20th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Citigroup reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $84.00 target price (down previously from $115.00) on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. Finally, Guggenheim reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $115.00 target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Merck & Co., Inc. has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $108.69.

Read Our Latest Research Report on MRK

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

Shares of MRK traded up $0.83 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $84.54. 6,026,664 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 16,230,130. The stock has a market cap of $212.29 billion, a PE ratio of 12.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.84 and a beta of 0.39. The company has a current ratio of 1.41, a quick ratio of 1.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $79.06 and its 200-day simple moving average is $86.71. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12 month low of $73.31 and a 12 month high of $129.93.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $2.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.16 by $0.06. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 43.23% and a net margin of 27.27%. The firm had revenue of $15.53 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.59 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.07 earnings per share. The company's revenue was down 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts expect that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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 value of $352,723.12. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 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 filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.13% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Merck & Co., Inc.

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Barnes Dennig Private Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 1st quarter worth about $27,000. WealthTrak Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter valued at about $35,000. Spurstone Advisory Services LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter valued at about $37,000. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC grew its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 141.7% in the first quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 377 shares of the company's stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 221 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hurley Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.07% of the company's stock.

About Merck & Co., Inc.

(Get Free Report)

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.

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Analyst Recommendations for Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

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.

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