Merck's Q3 Earnings Preview

On Thursday, Oct. 25, Merck & Co MRK will release its latest earnings report. Benzinga's outlook for Merck is included in the following report.

Earnings and Revenue

Sell-side analysts expect Merck's EPS to be near $1.14 on sales of $10.88 billion.

In the same quarter last year, Merck posted a profit of $1.11 on sales of $10.32 billion. The analyst consensus estimate would represent a 2.7 percent increase in the company's EPS figure. Revenue would be have grown 5.38 percent from the same quarter last year. Here's how the company's reported EPS has compared to analyst estimates in the past:

Stock Performance

Over the last 52-week period, shares are up 12.87 percent. Given that these returns are generally positive, long-term shareholders are probably satisfied going into this earnings release. Analysts have adjusted their estimates higher for EPS and revenues over the past 90 days. The most common rating by analysts on Merck stock is a Neutral. The strength of this rating has maintained conviction over the past three months.

Conference Call

Merck's Q3 is scheduled to hold a conference call at 8:00 a.m. ET and it can be accessed here: http://investors.merck.com/investors/webcasts-and-presentations/default.aspx