Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) Receives “Outperform” Rating from Royal Bank Of Canada

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)‘s stock had its “outperform” rating reissued by stock analysts at Royal Bank Of Canada in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. They presently have a $142.00 target price on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada’s price objective would indicate a potential upside of 12.48% from the company’s current price.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently commented on MRK. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $120.00 target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Monday. Bank of America raised their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $130.00 to $141.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 30th. Zacks Research upgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, April 6th. Finally, Citigroup initiated coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $125.00 target price for the company. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $132.11.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

MRK opened at $126.24 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a current ratio of 1.30. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 52-week low of $76.66 and a 52-week high of $130.29. The stock has a market capitalization of $311.80 billion, a PE ratio of 35.59, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.19. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $117.95 and its 200-day moving average price is $115.88.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported ($1.28) EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($1.47) by $0.19. The company had revenue of $16.29 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.85 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 27.55% and a net margin of 13.59%.The firm’s revenue was up 4.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.22 earnings per share. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.040-5.160 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 5.19 EPS for the current year.

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

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in MRK. Somerset Trust Co grew its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.9% in the 2nd quarter. Somerset Trust Co now owns 8,701 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,118,000 after buying an additional 81 shares during the last quarter. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC raised its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.9% during the second quarter. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC now owns 8,747 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,124,000 after buying an additional 81 shares during the last quarter. Chesapeake Wealth Management boosted its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. Chesapeake Wealth Management now owns 14,740 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,552,000 after acquiring an additional 87 shares in the last quarter. South Plains Financial Inc. boosted its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. South Plains Financial Inc. now owns 15,535 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,635,000 after acquiring an additional 89 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Syverson Strege & Co grew its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.2% in the fourth quarter. Syverson Strege & Co now owns 4,142 shares of the company’s stock worth $436,000 after acquiring an additional 90 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

About Merck & Co., Inc.

Merck & Co, Inc is a global biopharmaceutical company engaged in the discovery, development, manufacture and marketing of prescription medicines, vaccines, biologic therapies and animal health products. Its portfolio spans multiple therapeutic areas with a particular emphasis on oncology, vaccines and infectious disease, as well as therapies for metabolic and chronic conditions. Among its well-known products are the cancer immunotherapy Keytruda (pembrolizumab) and the human papillomavirus vaccine Gardasil; the company also markets a range of medicines and vaccines for veterinary use through Merck Animal Health.

Founded in the late 19th century as the U.S.