Merck KGaA (OTCMKTS:MKKGY) Short Interest Update

Merck KGaA (OTCMKTS:MKKGY) saw a significant growth in short interest in June. As of June 15th, there was short interest totaling 293,910 shares, a growth of 220.8% from the May 31st total of 91,604 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 140,159 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.1 days. Currently, 0.0% of the company’s stock are sold short.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MKKGY has been the subject of several research reports. 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 shares of Merck KGaA in a research note on Tuesday, May 26th. They set a “hold” rating on the stock. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to MarketBeat, Merck KGaA currently has an average rating of “Hold”.

Merck KGaA Price Performance

MKKGY opened at $33.70 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $21.78 billion, a PE ratio of 14.98, a P/E/G ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 1.02. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $29.29 and a 200-day moving average price of $28.48. Merck KGaA has a 1 year low of $23.73 and a 1 year high of $33.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 1.51 and a quick ratio of 1.00.

Merck KGaA (OTCMKTS:MKKGY) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 13th. The company reported $0.59 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.45 by $0.14. The company had revenue of $6.03 billion for 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%. Sell-side analysts predict that Merck KGaA will post 1.87 earnings per share 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.