Leerink Partnrs Comments on Merck & Co., Inc.’s Q3 2024 Earnings (NYSE:MRK)

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) – Investment analysts at Leerink Partnrs upped their Q3 2024 earnings per share (EPS) estimates for shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a note issued to investors on Friday, April 19th. Leerink Partnrs analyst D. Graybosch now expects that the company will earn $2.38 per share for the quarter, up from their prior estimate of $2.32. The consensus estimate for Merck & Co., Inc.’s current full-year earnings is $8.59 per share. Leerink Partnrs also issued estimates for Merck & Co., Inc.’s Q4 2024 earnings at $2.37 EPS, FY2024 earnings at $8.70 EPS, Q1 2025 earnings at $2.37 EPS, Q2 2025 earnings at $2.38 EPS, Q3 2025 earnings at $2.49 EPS, Q4 2025 earnings at $2.37 EPS, FY2025 earnings at $9.62 EPS, FY2026 earnings at $9.92 EPS, FY2027 earnings at $10.65 EPS and FY2028 earnings at $11.65 EPS.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 1st. The company reported $0.03 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.09) by $0.12. The business had revenue of $14.63 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.49 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 9.33% and a net margin of 0.61%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.62 EPS.

Several other analysts also recently weighed in on the company. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating and set a $135.00 target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Thursday, April 18th. TheStreet downgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a “b+” rating to a “c+” rating in a research note on Monday, March 4th. UBS Group increased their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $135.00 to $148.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 2nd. TD Cowen upgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their target price for the company from $125.00 to $135.00 in a research note on Thursday, January 4th. Finally, Berenberg Bank increased their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $140.00 to $143.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, April 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Merck & Co., Inc. currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $131.25.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE MRK opened at $126.94 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a current ratio of 1.25. The firm has a market cap of $321.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 906.71, a P/E/G ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 0.38. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $126.21 and its 200-day simple moving average is $115.35. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 52 week low of $99.14 and a 52 week high of $133.10.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Merck & Co., Inc. news, insider Joseph Romanelli sold 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $124.89, for a total value of $124,890.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 19,569 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,443,972.41. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, EVP Steven Mizell sold 50,694 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $126.65, for a total transaction of $6,420,395.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 23,619 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,991,346.35. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, insider Joseph Romanelli sold 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $124.89, for a total value of $124,890.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 19,569 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,443,972.41. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Merck & Co., Inc.

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC acquired a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Bare Financial Services Inc acquired a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Burkett Financial Services LLC acquired a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Rakuten Securities Inc. acquired a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. Finally, RIA Advisory Group LLC acquired a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. Institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

About Merck & Co., Inc.

Merck & Co, Inc operates as a healthcare company worldwide. It operates through two segments, Pharmaceutical and Animal Health. The Pharmaceutical segment offers human health pharmaceutical products in the areas of oncology, hospital acute care, immunology, neuroscience, virology, cardiovascular, and diabetes under the Keytruda, Bridion, Adempas, Lagevrio, Belsomra, Simponi, and Januvia brands, as well as vaccine products consisting of preventive pediatric, adolescent, and adult vaccines under the Gardasil/Gardasil 9, ProQuad, M-M-R II, Varivax, RotaTeq, Live Oral, Vaxneuvance, Pneumovax 23, and Vaqta names.