Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) Hits New 1-Year Low – Time to Sell?

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) shares reached a new 52-week low on Tuesday . The stock traded as low as $81.04 and last traded at $82.79, with a volume of 3690769 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $83.01.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have weighed in on MRK. UBS Group decreased their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $120.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $110.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft downgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $128.00 to $105.00 in a research report on Tuesday. TD Securities downgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $121.00 to $100.00 in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $113.00 to $106.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. One 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 company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $116.39.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Up 0.3 %

The company has a market capitalization of $210.60 billion, a PE ratio of 12.37, a PEG ratio of 0.83 and a beta of 0.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a current ratio of 1.36. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $96.62 and its 200 day moving average is $104.85.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last announced its quarterly earnings results 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 for 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 business’s quarterly 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 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 7th. Investors of record on Monday, March 17th will be paid a dividend of $0.81 per share. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.89%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 17th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s payout ratio is currently 48.14%.

Merck & Co., Inc. announced that its board has initiated a stock buyback program on Tuesday, January 28th that permits the company to repurchase $10.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to repurchase up to 4.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are generally a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Cristal N. Downing sold 2,361 shares of the 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 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 filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Inge G. Thulin purchased 2,833 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 6th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $88.25 per share, for a total transaction of $250,012.25. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 2,933 shares in the company, valued at approximately $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. Corporate insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

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

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Midwest Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Financial Life Planners bought a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC bought a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Finally, Promus Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. Institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

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.