Merck KGaA (OTCMKTS:MKKGY) Sets New 52-Week High – Should You Buy?

Merck KGaA (OTCMKTS:MKKGY) shares hit a new 52-week high on Thursday . The company traded as high as $33.48 and last traded at $33.31, with a volume of 5246 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $30.89.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MKKGY has been the topic of several research reports. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on Merck KGaA in a research report on Tuesday, May 26th. They issued a “hold” rating on the stock. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded Merck KGaA to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 19th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Merck KGaA currently has an average rating of “Hold”.

Merck KGaA Trading Up 4.8%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a current ratio of 1.51. The company has a market cap of $21.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.84, a P/E/G ratio of 2.72 and a beta of 1.02. The company’s fifty day moving average is $28.92 and its two-hundred day moving average is $28.35.

Merck KGaA (OTCMKTS:MKKGY) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 13th. The company reported $0.59 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.45 by $0.14. The business had revenue of $6.03 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.93 billion. Merck KGaA had a net margin of 12.07% and a return on equity of 8.79%. On average, research analysts anticipate that Merck KGaA will post 1.87 EPS for the current 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.