Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) Releases FY 2025 Earnings Guidance

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) issued an update on its FY 2025 earnings guidance on Thursday morning. The company provided earnings per share guidance of 8.820-8.970 for the period, compared to the consensus earnings per share estimate of 8.940. The company issued revenue guidance of $64.1 billion-$65.6 billion, compared to the consensus revenue estimate of $65.0 billion.

Merck & Co., Inc. Trading Down 0.3 %

Shares of NYSE:MRK opened at $78.73 on Thursday. 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 company has a market capitalization of $198.54 billion, a PE ratio of 11.70, a P/E/G ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 0.40. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12-month low of $75.93 and a 12-month high of $134.63. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $87.12 and its 200-day simple moving average is $95.61.

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 analysts' consensus estimates of $2.16 by $0.06. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 45.35% and a net margin of 26.67%. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 7th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 17th were issued a $0.81 dividend. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.12%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 17th. Merck & Co., Inc.'s dividend payout ratio is presently 48.14%.

Merck & Co., Inc. declared that its board has initiated a stock buyback 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.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently commented on MRK shares. Bank of America lowered their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $118.00 to $112.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Cantor Fitzgerald initiated coverage on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Tuesday. They set a "neutral" rating and a $85.00 price objective on the stock. Citigroup cut their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $115.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. BMO Capital Markets lowered their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $105.00 to $96.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, Leerink Partners cut their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $136.00 to $119.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 13th. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $111.13.

Insider Transactions at Merck & Co., Inc.

In other Merck & Co., Inc. news, Director Inge G. Thulin bought 2,833 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 6th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $88.25 per share, for a total transaction of $250,012.25. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 2,933 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $258,837.25. This represents a 2,833.00 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Cristal N. Downing sold 2,361 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $88.76, for a total transaction of $209,562.36. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 7,085 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $628,864.60. The trade was a 24.99 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.09% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Merck & Co., Inc.

A hedge fund recently raised its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. stock. Brighton Jones LLC raised its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 29.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 38,278 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 8,710 shares during the quarter. Brighton Jones LLC's holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $3,808,000 as of its most recent SEC filing. 76.07% of the stock is currently 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.

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