Zacks Research Predicts Lower Earnings for Merck & Co., Inc.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) – Zacks Research lowered their Q3 2024 earnings estimates for Merck & Co., Inc. in a report issued on Monday, October 21st. Zacks Research analyst S. Ganoria now forecasts that the company will earn $1.46 per share for the quarter, down from their previous estimate of $1.72. The consensus estimate for Merck & Co., Inc.’s current full-year earnings is $7.88 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Merck & Co., Inc.’s Q4 2024 earnings at $1.93 EPS, FY2024 earnings at $7.74 EPS, Q3 2025 earnings at $2.45 EPS, FY2025 earnings at $9.39 EPS and Q1 2026 earnings at $2.43 EPS.

Several other brokerages have also recently weighed in on MRK. Barclays reduced their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $142.00 to $140.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, October 7th. Wolfe Research raised shares of Merck & Co., Inc. to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Sanford C. Bernstein assumed coverage on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Thursday, October 17th. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $115.00 target price on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $140.00 to $125.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $155.00 price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $131.62.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Down 2.2 %

Shares of NYSE:MRK opened at $106.34 on Tuesday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $114.16 and its 200 day moving average price is $122.19. The stock has a market cap of $269.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 118.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 0.39. Merck & Co., Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $99.80 and a fifty-two week high of $134.63. The company has a quick ratio of 1.22, a current ratio of 1.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The company reported $2.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.16 by $0.12. The business had revenue of $16.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $15.87 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 21.99% and a return on equity of 40.69%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned ($2.06) earnings per share.

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

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. purchased a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 2nd quarter valued at $39,000. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 121.8% in the 2nd quarter. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC now owns 326 shares of the company’s stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 179 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP purchased a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 2nd quarter valued at $42,000. Ruedi Wealth Management Inc. grew its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 27.7% in the 2nd quarter. Ruedi Wealth Management Inc. now owns 397 shares of the company’s stock valued at $49,000 after buying an additional 86 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dixon Mitchell Investment Counsel Inc. purchased a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 1st quarter valued at $53,000. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Merck & Co., Inc. Company Profile

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.