Merck KGaA (OTCMKTS:MKKGY) Sees Large Increase in Short Interest

Merck KGaA (OTCMKTS:MKKGY) was the target of a significant growth in short interest in August. As of August 14th, there was short interest totaling 8,948 shares, a growth of 54.0% from the July 30th total of 5,810 shares. Currently, 0.0% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 55,645 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 0.2 days.

Merck KGaA Trading Up 0.7%

Shares of MKKGY traded up $0.24 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $32.69. The company had a trading volume of 1,888 shares, compared to its average volume of 93,992. Merck KGaA has a 1-year low of $23.73 and a 1-year high of $34.19. The company has a quick ratio of 1.00, a current ratio of 1.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $32.44 and a 200-day simple moving average of $29.49. The stock has a market cap of $21.13 billion, a PE ratio of 16.85, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.66 and a beta of 0.98.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on MKKGY shares. Zacks Research cut Merck KGaA from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, August 20th. HSBC upgraded Merck KGaA to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, July 6th. UBS Group lowered Merck KGaA from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 20th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on Merck KGaA in a research 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.com, Merck KGaA presently has an average rating of “Hold”.

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.