Merck KGaA (OTCMKTS:MKKGY) Upgraded to Hold at HSBC

Merck KGaA (OTCMKTS:MKKGY) was upgraded by analysts at HSBC to a “hold” rating in a note issued to investors on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other equities analysts also recently commented on the stock. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded shares of Merck KGaA to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 19th. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on Merck KGaA in a research report on Tuesday, May 26th. They issued a “hold” rating on the stock. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold”.

Merck KGaA Stock Performance

Shares of MKKGY stock opened at $31.98 on Monday. Merck KGaA has a 12 month low of $23.73 and a 12 month high of $34.19. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $30.14 and its 200-day simple moving average is $28.73. The firm has a market cap of $20.66 billion, a PE ratio of 14.21, a P/E/G ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a quick ratio of 1.00, a current ratio of 1.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36.

Merck KGaA (OTCMKTS:MKKGY) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, May 13th. The company reported $0.59 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.45 by $0.14. Merck KGaA had a net margin of 12.07% and a return on equity of 8.79%. The business had revenue of $6.03 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.93 billion. Equities research analysts expect that Merck KGaA will post 1.87 EPS for the current fiscal 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.