Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) Stock Price Down 5.4% – Here’s Why

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) shares traded down 5.4% during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as low as $87.27 and last traded at $87.30. 10,580,677 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 34% from the average session volume of 16,040,952 shares. The stock had previously closed at $92.31.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have weighed in 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. BMO Capital Markets lowered their price objective on shares of 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. Guggenheim cut their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $122.00 to $115.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Hsbc Global Res upgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Finally, HSBC upgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $130.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $117.12.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $221.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.06, a PEG ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 0.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 1.36 and a quick ratio of 1.15. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $92.83 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $100.78.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $1.72 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.85 by ($0.13). The business had revenue of $15.62 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $15.51 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 26.67% and a return on equity of 45.35%. The company’s revenue was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.03 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 7th. Investors of record on Monday, March 17th will be given a $0.81 dividend. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.69%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 17th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 48.14%.

Merck & Co., Inc. announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase plan on Tuesday, January 28th that authorizes the company to repurchase $10.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to purchase up to 4.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at Merck & Co., Inc.

In related news, insider Cristal N. Downing sold 2,361 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $88.76, for a total value 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 $628,864.60. This represents a 24.99 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, 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, for a total transaction of $250,012.25. Following the purchase, the director now directly 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 currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Merck & Co., Inc.

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Midwest Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Financial Life Planners acquired a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC purchased a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Finally, Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC acquired a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $34,000. 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.