Merck KGaA (OTCMKTS:MKKGY) Sets New 1-Year High – Here’s What Happened

Merck KGaA (OTCMKTS:MKKGY) reached 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 trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $30.89.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on MKKGY. Sanford C. Bernstein raised Merck KGaA to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, March 19th. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on Merck KGaA in a research report on Tuesday, May 26th. They set a “hold” rating for the company. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to MarketBeat, Merck KGaA presently has an average rating of “Hold”.

Merck KGaA Trading Up 4.8%

The company has a market cap of $21.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.72 and a beta of 1.02. 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 company’s 50-day moving average is $28.92 and its 200 day moving average is $28.35.

Merck KGaA (OTCMKTS:MKKGY) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 13th. The company reported $0.59 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.45 by $0.14. The business had revenue of $6.03 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.93 billion. Merck KGaA had a net margin of 12.07% and a return on equity of 8.79%. Research analysts predict 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.