As of Wednesday close, Merck & Co. Inc.’s (NYSE:MRK) stock was down -$0.05, moving down -0.05 percent to $107.31. The average number of shares traded per day over the past five days has been 6,167,040 shares. 2 times new highs have been achieved over the past 5 days, with a -$0.50 fall in that time frame. In the last twenty days, the average volume was 6,389,005, while in the previous 50 days, it was 6,992,456.
Since last month, MRK stock retreated -2.13%. Shares of the company fell to $104.92 on 09/06/23, the lowest level in the past month. A 52-week high of $119.65 was reached on 05/03/23 after having rallying from a 52-week low of $84.52. Since the beginning of this year, MRK’s stock price has dropped by -3.28% or -$3.64, and marked a new high 10 times. However, the stock has declined by -10.31% since its 52-week high.
MRK stock investors should be aware that Merck & Co. Inc. (MRK) stock had its last reported insider trading activity 38 days ago on Aug 14. MIZELL STEVEN, the EVP, Chief HR Officer of the company, disposed of 4,250 shares for $109.01 on Aug 14. It resulted in a $463,292 divestment by the insider. MIZELL STEVEN sold 4,500 shares at an average price of $105.49 on Aug 03. The insider now owns 27,185 shares following the transaction. On Aug 02, President, Human Health Int?l Romanelli Joseph sold 59 shares at $107.37 apiece. The transaction was valued at $6,335.
Valuation Metrics
Right now, Merck & Co. Inc. (MRK) has a P/E ratio of about 88.03. The stock’s beta is 0.34. Besides these, the trailing price-to-sales (P/S) ratio of 4.70, the price-to-book (PB) ratio of 7.04, and the price-to-cash flow ratio of 25.32 may also be considered.
The latest dividend of $0.73 per share was paid out, remained unchanged from last year’s $0.73. On Tuesday November 29 2022, a $0.04 dividend increase was announced.
Financial Health
In the three months ended June 29, Merck & Co. Inc.’s quick ratio stood at 1.00, while its current ratio was 1.30, showing that the company is able to pay off its debt. According to company report, the long-term debt-to-equity ratio for the quarter ending June 29 was 0.88, and the total debt-to-equity ratio was 0.95. On the profitability front, the trailing twelve-month gross margin is 73.20% percent. In the year ended June 29, EBITDA margin amounted to 40.04%, whereas operating margins totaled 11.30%. Based on annual data, MRK earned $41.87 billion in gross profit and brought in $59.28 billion in revenue.
A company’s management is another factor that investors consider when determining the profitability of an investment. In the past year, return on investment (ROI) was 20.90%. Return on equity (ROE) for the past 12 months was 7.10%.
In Merck & Co. Inc.’s quarter-end financial report for June 29, it reported total debt of $34.07 billion. According to the earnings report, the company had a higher net income in the recent quarter than it did in the previous quarter. MRK’s revenue rose 2.94% to $14.49 billion during the quarter, while net income inched up to $15.04 billion. While analysts expected Merck & Co. Inc. to report -$2.18 quarterly earnings, the actual figure was -$2.06 per share, beating the consensus estimate by 5.50%. During the quarter, the company generated -$4.11 billion in EBITDA. The liabilities of Merck & Co. Inc. were 65.73 billion at the end of its most recent quarter ended June 29, and its total debt was $36.91 billion. The value of shareholders’ equity is $2.54 billion.
Technical Picture
This quick technical analysis looks at Merck & Co. Inc.’s (MRK) price momentum. With a historical volatility rate of 9.80%, the RSI 9-day stood at 43.29% on 20 September.
With respect to its five-day moving average, the current Merck & Co. Inc. price is down by -0.46% percent or -$0.50. At present, MRK shares trade +0.07% above its 20-day simple moving average and -6.82% percent below its 100-day simple moving average. However, the stock is currently trading approximately -1.28% below its SMA50 and -2.27% below its SMA200.
Stochastic coefficient K was 44.47% and Stochastic coefficient D was 46.52%, while ATR was 1.63. Given the Stochastic reading of 42.53% for the 14-day period, the RSI (14) reading has been calculated as 45.85%. As of today, the MACD Oscillator reading stands at -0.58, while the 14-day reading stands at -0.61.
Analyst Ratings
HSBC Securities launched its rating on Merck & Co. Inc. (NYSE: MRK) to a Hold in a note to investors on July 14, 2023. Merck & Co. Inc. (MRK) has been rated Overweight by analysts. According to 0 brokerage firms, MRK is a sell, and 9 firms recommend it is a Hold. There are 0 analysts who say the stock is underweight. A total of 4 analysts rate Merck & Co. Inc. stock as buy, with 16 recommending it as overweight.
With a median target price of $125.00, the current consensus forecast for the stock is $103.00 – $135.00. Based on these forecasts, analysts predict Merck & Co. Inc. (MRK) will achieve an average price target of $124.01.
