Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) Receives $135.36 Consensus Target Price from Analysts

Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) have been given an average rating of “Moderate Buy” by the fourteen ratings firms that are covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $134.58.

MRK has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Truist Financial upped their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $142.00 to $143.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, April 26th. UBS Group reduced their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $148.00 to $142.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday. Berenberg Bank upped their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $140.00 to $143.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, April 8th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $140.00 to $125.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $155.00 price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Tuesday, June 18th.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Up 1.2 %

Merck & Co., Inc. stock opened at $115.20 on Friday. The business has a fifty day moving average of $126.76 and a two-hundred day moving average of $126.50. The company has a quick ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 1.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77. The firm has a market cap of $291.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 128.00, a P/E/G ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 0.38. Merck & Co., Inc. has a twelve month low of $99.14 and a twelve month high of $134.63.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The company reported $2.28 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.16 by $0.12. The company had revenue of $16.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.87 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 41.67% and a net margin of 21.99%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s revenue was up 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned ($2.06) earnings per share. On average, analysts forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 8.04 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, October 7th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 16th will be given a dividend of $0.77 per share. This represents a $3.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.67%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 16th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 342.22%.

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

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC acquired a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. Bare Financial Services Inc acquired a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Burkett Financial Services LLC acquired a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Rakuten Securities Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Finally, RIA Advisory Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.