Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) Trading 1.3% Higher – Here’s Why

Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) shot up 1.3% on Friday . The company traded as high as $101.79 and last traded at $101.11. 2,179,669 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 76% from the average session volume of 8,966,493 shares. The stock had previously closed at $99.86.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently issued reports on MRK. Wolfe Research started coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Friday, November 15th. They issued a “peer perform” rating on the stock. Daiwa Capital Markets lowered shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, November 11th. Evercore ISI upgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 30th. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $155.00 price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. Finally, UBS Group reduced their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $142.00 to $136.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $130.86.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

The company has a 50 day moving average of $107.11 and a 200 day moving average of $117.83. 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 firm has a market cap of $250.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.79, a P/E/G ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 0.40.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.57 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.50 by $0.07. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 36.42% and a net margin of 19.23%. The company had revenue of $16.66 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.47 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.13 earnings per share. Merck & Co., Inc.’s revenue was up 4.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 7.73 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 8th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 16th will be paid a $0.81 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 16th. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.27%. This is a positive change from Merck & Co., Inc.’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.77. Merck & Co., Inc.’s payout ratio is presently 64.57%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Merck & Co., Inc.

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in MRK. Boyar Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 21.1% in the 3rd quarter. Boyar Asset Management Inc. now owns 5,361 shares of the company’s stock valued at $609,000 after acquiring an additional 935 shares in the last quarter. Sculati Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 1.7% in the third quarter. Sculati Wealth Management LLC now owns 25,259 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,868,000 after purchasing an additional 419 shares in the last quarter. Eaton Financial Holdings Company LLC acquired a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the third quarter worth about $1,466,000. Anchor Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 1.7% during the third quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC now owns 75,070 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,525,000 after buying an additional 1,228 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Tudor Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $427,000. Institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Company Profile

Merck & Co, Inc operates as a healthcare company worldwide. It operates through two segments, Pharmaceutical and Animal Health. The Pharmaceutical segment offers human health pharmaceutical products in the areas of oncology, hospital acute care, immunology, neuroscience, virology, cardiovascular, and diabetes under the Keytruda, Bridion, Adempas, Lagevrio, Belsomra, Simponi, and Januvia brands, as well as vaccine products consisting of preventive pediatric, adolescent, and adult vaccines under the Gardasil/Gardasil 9, ProQuad, M-M-R II, Varivax, RotaTeq, Live Oral, Vaxneuvance, Pneumovax 23, and Vaqta names.