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Merck (MRK) Stock Moves -1.06%: What You Should Know
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Merck (MRK - Free Report) closed at $86.23 in the latest trading session, marking a -1.06% move from the prior day. This change was narrower than the S&P 500's daily loss of 1.07%. Meanwhile, the Dow lost 1.07%, and the Nasdaq, a tech-heavy index, lost 0.07%.
Prior to today's trading, shares of the pharmaceutical company had gained 0.38% over the past month. This has outpaced the Medical sector's loss of 4.02% and the S&P 500's loss of 3.49% in that time.
Merck will be looking to display strength as it nears its next earnings release. In that report, analysts expect Merck to post earnings of $1.73 per share. This would mark a year-over-year decline of 1.14%. Meanwhile, our latest consensus estimate is calling for revenue of $14.3 billion, up 8.73% from the prior-year quarter.
For the full year, our Zacks Consensus Estimates are projecting earnings of $7.32 per share and revenue of $58.85 billion, which would represent changes of +21.59% and +17.33%, respectively, from the prior year.
It is also important to note the recent changes to analyst estimates for Merck. Recent revisions tend to reflect the latest near-term business trends. As a result, we can interpret positive estimate revisions as a good sign for the company's business outlook.
Research indicates that these estimate revisions are directly correlated with near-term share price momentum. We developed the Zacks Rank to capitalize on this phenomenon. Our system takes these estimate changes into account and delivers a clear, actionable rating model.
The Zacks Rank system ranges from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell). It has a remarkable, outside-audited track record of success, with #1 stocks delivering an average annual return of +25% since 1988. Over the past month, the Zacks Consensus EPS estimate has moved 0.07% higher. Merck is holding a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold) right now.
Digging into valuation, Merck currently has a Forward P/E ratio of 11.91. Its industry sports an average Forward P/E of 12.58, so we one might conclude that Merck is trading at a discount comparatively.
We can also see that MRK currently has a PEG ratio of 1.18. This metric is used similarly to the famous P/E ratio, but the PEG ratio also takes into account the stock's expected earnings growth rate. The Large Cap Pharmaceuticals industry currently had an average PEG ratio of 1.86 as of yesterday's close.
The Large Cap Pharmaceuticals industry is part of the Medical sector. This industry currently has a Zacks Industry Rank of 92, which puts it in the top 37% of all 250+ industries.
The Zacks Industry Rank includes is listed in order from best to worst in terms of the average Zacks Rank of the individual companies within each of these sectors. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1.
Be sure to follow all of these stock-moving metrics, and many more, on Zacks.com.
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Merck (MRK) Stock Moves -1.06%: What You Should Know
Merck (MRK - Free Report) closed at $86.23 in the latest trading session, marking a -1.06% move from the prior day. This change was narrower than the S&P 500's daily loss of 1.07%. Meanwhile, the Dow lost 1.07%, and the Nasdaq, a tech-heavy index, lost 0.07%.
Prior to today's trading, shares of the pharmaceutical company had gained 0.38% over the past month. This has outpaced the Medical sector's loss of 4.02% and the S&P 500's loss of 3.49% in that time.
Merck will be looking to display strength as it nears its next earnings release. In that report, analysts expect Merck to post earnings of $1.73 per share. This would mark a year-over-year decline of 1.14%. Meanwhile, our latest consensus estimate is calling for revenue of $14.3 billion, up 8.73% from the prior-year quarter.
For the full year, our Zacks Consensus Estimates are projecting earnings of $7.32 per share and revenue of $58.85 billion, which would represent changes of +21.59% and +17.33%, respectively, from the prior year.
It is also important to note the recent changes to analyst estimates for Merck. Recent revisions tend to reflect the latest near-term business trends. As a result, we can interpret positive estimate revisions as a good sign for the company's business outlook.
Research indicates that these estimate revisions are directly correlated with near-term share price momentum. We developed the Zacks Rank to capitalize on this phenomenon. Our system takes these estimate changes into account and delivers a clear, actionable rating model.
The Zacks Rank system ranges from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell). It has a remarkable, outside-audited track record of success, with #1 stocks delivering an average annual return of +25% since 1988. Over the past month, the Zacks Consensus EPS estimate has moved 0.07% higher. Merck is holding a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold) right now.
Digging into valuation, Merck currently has a Forward P/E ratio of 11.91. Its industry sports an average Forward P/E of 12.58, so we one might conclude that Merck is trading at a discount comparatively.
We can also see that MRK currently has a PEG ratio of 1.18. This metric is used similarly to the famous P/E ratio, but the PEG ratio also takes into account the stock's expected earnings growth rate. The Large Cap Pharmaceuticals industry currently had an average PEG ratio of 1.86 as of yesterday's close.
The Large Cap Pharmaceuticals industry is part of the Medical sector. This industry currently has a Zacks Industry Rank of 92, which puts it in the top 37% of all 250+ industries.
The Zacks Industry Rank includes is listed in order from best to worst in terms of the average Zacks Rank of the individual companies within each of these sectors. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1.
Be sure to follow all of these stock-moving metrics, and many more, on Zacks.com.