TD Securities Downgrades Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) to Hold

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) was downgraded by research analysts at TD Securities from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report issued on Monday,BayStreet.CA reports. They currently have a $100.00 price target on the stock, down from their previous price target of $121.00. TD Securities’ price objective would indicate a potential upside of 15.58% from the company’s previous close.

Other analysts have also issued research reports about the company. Leerink Partners decreased their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $136.00 to $119.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Sanford C. Bernstein started coverage on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. They set a “market perform” rating and a $115.00 price target on the stock. Truist Financial reissued a “hold” rating and issued a $110.00 price objective (down previously from $130.00) on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Hsbc Global Res upgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Finally, Citigroup cut their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $115.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $117.94.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

Shares of MRK opened at $86.52 on Monday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12-month low of $85.73 and a 12-month high of $134.63. The stock has a market cap of $218.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.86, a PEG ratio of 0.83 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. The company has a 50-day moving average of $98.44 and a two-hundred day moving average of $106.06.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 company had revenue of $15.62 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.51 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 45.35% and a net margin of 26.67%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.03 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. declared that its board has authorized 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 reacquire up to 4.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

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

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Merck & Co., Inc.

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. AMF Tjanstepension AB lifted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 114.2% during the third quarter. AMF Tjanstepension AB now owns 802,384 shares of the company’s stock worth $91,205,000 after purchasing an additional 427,831 shares during the last quarter. Retirement Planning Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 3rd quarter valued at about $397,000. Redhawk Wealth Advisors Inc. grew its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 12.1% during the 3rd quarter. Redhawk Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 9,534 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,083,000 after buying an additional 1,032 shares during the last quarter. MEAG MUNICH ERGO Kapitalanlagegesellschaft mbH raised its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.6% during the third quarter. MEAG MUNICH ERGO Kapitalanlagegesellschaft mbH now owns 776,920 shares of the company’s stock worth $88,227,000 after acquiring an additional 19,679 shares during the period. Finally, Patriot Investment Management Group Inc. boosted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.9% in the third quarter. Patriot Investment Management Group Inc. now owns 13,236 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,503,000 after acquiring an additional 113 shares during the period. 76.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.