Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) Given New $142.00 Price Target at BMO Capital Markets

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) had its price objective increased by investment analysts at BMO Capital Markets from $135.00 to $142.00 in a research note issued on Monday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an “outperform” rating on the stock. BMO Capital Markets’ target price suggests a potential upside of 14.78% from the stock’s current price.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports on MRK. Guggenheim raised their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $140.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $112.00 to $113.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday. Zacks Research upgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 17th. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $142.00 price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Wednesday, July 8th. Finally, Scotiabank upped their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $136.00 to $155.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 30th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $133.67.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

Merck & Co., Inc. stock opened at $123.72 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $305.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.85, a P/E/G ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 0.19. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12-month low of $76.66 and a 12-month high of $130.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.30 and a quick ratio of 1.06. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $118.83 and its two-hundred day moving average is $116.36.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported ($1.28) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($1.47) by $0.19. The business had revenue of $16.29 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.85 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 13.59% and a return on equity of 27.55%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 4.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.22 earnings per share. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.040-5.160 EPS. Equities analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 5.17 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of MRK. D.A. Davidson & CO. boosted its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 4.4% in the 4th quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 576,959 shares of the company’s stock valued at $60,731,000 after buying an additional 24,576 shares during the period. Farther Finance Advisors LLC raised its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 48.9% during the fourth quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 97,818 shares of the company’s stock worth $10,296,000 after acquiring an additional 32,114 shares during the period. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 12.7% in the third quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. now owns 123,366 shares of the company’s stock worth $10,364,000 after acquiring an additional 13,940 shares during the last quarter. Campbell Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the third quarter worth about $1,866,000. Finally, Norris Perne & French LLP MI boosted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 12.8% in the fourth quarter. Norris Perne & French LLP MI now owns 252,162 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,543,000 after acquiring an additional 28,635 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Company Profile

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.