Merck KGaA (OTCMKTS:MKKGY) Shares Gap Down – Here’s What Happened

Shares of Merck KGaA (OTCMKTS:MKKGY) gapped down before the market opened on Tuesday . The stock had previously closed at $31.15, but opened at $29.77. Merck KGaA shares last traded at $29.82, with a volume of 2,081 shares traded.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MKKGY has been the subject of several recent research reports. HSBC upgraded Merck KGaA to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, July 6th. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on shares of Merck KGaA in a report on Tuesday, May 26th. They set a “hold” rating for the company. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, Merck KGaA has a consensus rating of “Hold”.

Merck KGaA Price Performance

The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $31.14 and a 200 day simple moving average of $28.94. The stock has a market capitalization of $20.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.89, a P/E/G ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a current ratio of 1.51.

Merck KGaA (OTCMKTS:MKKGY) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 13th. The company reported $0.59 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.45 by $0.14. Merck KGaA had a net margin of 12.07% and a return on equity of 8.79%. The firm had revenue of $6.03 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.93 billion. Equities research analysts forecast that Merck KGaA will post 1.87 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Merck KGaA Company Profile

Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany, commonly referred to as Merck Group, is a multinational science and technology company with origins dating back to 1668. The company develops and manufactures products and technologies across healthcare, life science and electronics applications. It is distinct from the U.S. pharmaceutical company Merck & Co; Merck KGaA is a European group headquartered in Darmstadt and is publicly listed in Germany with an OTC American depositary receipt available under the symbol MKKGY.

Merck’s Healthcare business develops prescription medicines and related services focused on areas such as oncology, immunology, neurology (including therapies for multiple sclerosis) and fertility.