Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) Price Target Raised to $155.00

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) had its target price lifted by Cantor Fitzgerald from $145.00 to $155.00 in a report released on Monday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a neutral rating on the stock.

A number of other analysts have also recently issued reports on MRK. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $142.00 to $170.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 20th. Barclays upped their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $150.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, October 26th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $150.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, September 4th. Citigroup lifted their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $145.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, October 12th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $145.00 to $175.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 20th. Seventeen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Merck & Co., Inc. presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $155.74.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Up 3.8%

Merck & Co., Inc. stock opened at $150.19 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $370.55 billion, a PE ratio of 46.37, a P/E/G ratio of 6.57 and a beta of 0.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a current ratio of 1.32. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $146.57 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $127.26. Merck & Co., Inc. has a twelve month low of $82.91 and a twelve month high of $156.92.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 29th. The company reported $2.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.09 by $0.40. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 3.64% and a return on equity of 16.56%. The company had revenue of $18.09 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $17.33 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.58 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 2.85 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other Merck & Co., Inc. news, EVP Chirfi Guindo sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $135.00, for a total value of $1,350,000.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 36,613 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,942,755. This trade represents a 21.45% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Richard R. Deluca sold 11,699 shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $131.63, for a total value of $1,539,939.37. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 110,167 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,501,282.21. This represents a 9.60% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 135,635 shares of company stock valued at $18,011,040. 0.17% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of MRK. BlackRock Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.5% during the second quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 226,999,837 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,169,479,000 after acquiring an additional 1,073,507 shares during the period. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.9% during the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 120,413,256 shares of the company’s stock worth $15,573,754,000 after purchasing an additional 1,087,583 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.3% in the 2nd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 86,249,283 shares of the company’s stock valued at $11,083,033,000 after purchasing an additional 1,934,312 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE boosted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 10.5% in the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 30,774,221 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,701,831,000 after purchasing an additional 2,919,780 shares during the period. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 23.8% in the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 15,456,039 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,858,938,000 after buying an additional 2,969,856 shares in the last quarter. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Key Merck & Co., Inc. News

Here are the key news stories impacting Merck & Co., Inc. this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Wall Street’s broad advance provided a supportive backdrop for stocks, including healthcare shares; this looks like a market-wide tailwind rather than a Merck-specific catalyst. Stocks Surged Across the Board Today, and Biotech Brought Its Own Earnings Story
• Positive Sentiment: Cantor Fitzgerald raised its price target on Merck, while Freedom Broker reportedly forecast further appreciation, signaling supportive analyst sentiment. Cantor Fitzgerald Price Target Bump Freedom Broker Forecast
• Positive Sentiment: The FDA granted emergency-use authorization for a Merck treatment for screwworm in dogs, offering a potential near-term opportunity in animal health. Merck gets US FDA emergency use nod for treatment of screwworm in dogs
• Positive Sentiment: Merck began enrolling patients in a Phase 3 study of Ohtuvayre to assess whether it can prevent COPD exacerbations. The trial expands the drug’s potential, though results are not yet available. Merck Initiates Phase 3 Study of Ohtuvayre
• Neutral Sentiment: Merck’s pipeline is cited as a possible growth driver, but the company’s looming patent cliff remains a significant longer-term risk to growth. Merck’s Pipeline Could Be Its Next Big Growth Driver
• Negative Sentiment: DZ Bank cut its rating from Buy to Hold, setting a $153 price target that suggests limited upside from the price cited in the report. DZ Bank rating update

Merck & Co., Inc. Company Profile

Merck & Co, Inc is a global healthcare company that develops, manufactures and markets prescription medicines, vaccines and animal-health products. Its pharmaceutical business focuses on oncology, infectious diseases, cardiology, immunology and other areas of significant medical need. The company serves patients, healthcare providers and institutions in markets worldwide.

Merck’s principal products include Keytruda, an immunotherapy used to treat a range of cancers; Gardasil and Gardasil 9, vaccines that help protect against human papillomavirus; and Januvia and Janumet, medicines used to manage type 2 diabetes.