Merck KGaA (OTCMKTS:MKKGY) Stock Short Interest Rises 273.6%

Merck KGaA (OTCMKTS:MKKGY) was the target of a significant growth in short interest during the month of October. As of October 15th, there was short interest totaling 146,247 shares, a growth of 273.6% from the September 30th total of 39,149 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 182,220 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 0.8 days. Currently, 0.0% of the shares of the company are short sold.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on MKKGY shares. UBS Group downgraded shares of Merck KGaA from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 20th. Zacks Research lowered shares of Merck KGaA from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Monday, October 12th. Finally, HSBC raised Merck KGaA to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, July 6th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Merck KGaA currently has an average rating of “Reduce”.

Merck KGaA Trading Up 3.3%

Shares of MKKGY stock traded up $1.07 on Thursday, reaching $33.68. 34,366 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 96,944. The stock has a market cap of $21.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.36, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.03 and a beta of 0.95. The company has a quick ratio of 1.09, a current ratio of 1.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37. Merck KGaA has a 1-year low of $23.73 and a 1-year high of $34.19. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $31.46 and a two-hundred day moving average of $29.89.

Merck KGaA Company Profile

Merck KGaA is a Germany-based science and technology company headquartered in Darmstadt. Founded in 1668, it is one of the world’s oldest operating pharmaceutical and chemical companies. The company is separate from Merck & Co, Inc, the U.S.-based pharmaceutical company, and operates as EMD in the United States and Canada.

Merck KGaA conducts its operations through three primary business sectors: Life Science, Healthcare and Electronics. Its Life Science business supplies laboratory products, research tools, bioprocessing technologies and services used by pharmaceutical, biotechnology, academic and industrial customers.