PREVIEW: Merck shares up; Q2 EPS, revenue seen rising
29/07/2024 17:26
** Shares in pharmaceuticals company Merck & Co Inc MRK.N up
1.7% on Monday ahead of quarterly results due out before market
close on Tuesday
** Wall St sees MRK, maker of cancer drug Keytruda,
reporting adj EPS of $2.15 vs $2.06 in year-ago quarter on rev
of $15.84 bln, which would be up 5.4% y/y, according to the
latest data from LSEG
** In the last 8 quarters MRK's EPS and rev beat Street
estimates very time
** In April, Merck had raised its annual profit and revenue
forecasts on the back of double-digit growth for Keytruda, the
world's top selling prescription medicine.
** YTD shares in MRK up ~17% vs 10% gain for S&P 500
healthcare sector index .SPXHC and 7.8% advance for Dow
Industrial Average .DJI
** MRK last traded at $127.36 vs median PT of $145,
according to LSEG, which shows 28 analyst ratings, 8 'strong
buy,' 17 'buy' and 3 'hold' recommendations
(Reporting By Sinéad Carew)
((sinead.carew@thomsonreuters.com; +13322191897;))