Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) Trading 0.1% Higher - Should You Buy?

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report)'s stock price shot up 0.1% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $93.45 and last traded at $92.62. 2,093,979 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 79% from the average session volume of 9,926,452 shares. The stock had previously closed at $92.56.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MRK has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. HSBC raised Merck & Co., Inc. from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $130.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Truist Financial reaffirmed a "hold" rating and issued a $110.00 target price (down previously from $130.00) on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Daiwa Capital Markets lowered shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, November 11th. Citigroup reduced their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $115.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, 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 report on Wednesday, February 5th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $116.39.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

The business's 50 day simple moving average is $94.37 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $103.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $234.80 billion, a PE ratio of 13.81, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 0.38. The company has a current ratio of 1.36, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $1.72 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.85 by ($0.13). The business had revenue of $15.62 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.51 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 26.67% and a return on equity of 45.35%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.03 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 7th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 17th will be given a dividend of $0.81 per share. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.49%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 17th. Merck & Co., Inc.'s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 48.14%.

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

Insider Transactions at Merck & Co., Inc.

In related news, Director Inge G. Thulin purchased 2,833 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 6th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $88.25 per share, with a total value of $250,012.25. Following the purchase, the director now owns 2,933 shares of the company's stock, valued at $258,837.25. The trade was a 2,833.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Cristal N. Downing sold 2,361 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $88.76, for a total transaction of $209,562.36. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 7,085 shares of the company's stock, valued at $628,864.60. This represents 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.

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of MRK. Midwest Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Financial Life Planners acquired a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC purchased a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. Finally, Promus Capital LLC purchased a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.07% of the company's stock.

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.

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