<div id="readability-page-1" class="page"><p><span>Merck &amp; Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report)</span>'s stock had its &#34;hold (c-)&#34; rating reiterated by equities researchers at Weiss Ratings in a research report issued on Wednesday,Weiss Ratings reports.</p><div><p><span></span><span>Get <strong>Merck &amp; Co., Inc.</strong> alerts:</span></p></div><ul><li>5 Healthcare Plays Powering the Sector’s Big Comeback</li></ul><p>Other analysts also recently issued reports about the company. Wells Fargo &amp; Company lowered their target price on Merck &amp; Co., Inc. from $97.00 to $90.00 and set an &#34;equal weight&#34; rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on Merck &amp; Co., Inc. from $99.00 to $98.00 and set an &#34;equal weight&#34; rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. Finally, Berenberg Bank downgraded Merck &amp; Co., Inc. from a &#34;buy&#34; rating to a &#34;hold&#34; rating and lowered their target price for the company from $100.00 to $90.00 in a research note on Wednesday, September 17th. One research analyst  has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned  a Buy rating, fourteen have issued  a Hold rating and one  has issued  a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock  has a consensus rating of &#34;Hold&#34; and a consensus price target of $104.31.</p><p><b>Check Out Our Latest Stock Analysis on Merck &amp; Co., Inc.</b></p><h2>Merck &amp; Co., Inc. Stock Down 1.4%</h2><ul><li>As the Market Rotates, This Healthcare ETF Is Leading the Way</li></ul><p>Shares of NYSE MRK opened at $86.39 on Wednesday. Merck &amp; Co., Inc. has a 12-month low of $73.31 and a 12-month high of $111.58. The company has a market cap of $215.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.31, a P/E/G ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 0.37. The company has a current ratio of 1.42, a quick ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $83.15 and a 200 day moving average price of $81.56. </p><p>Merck &amp; Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The company reported $2.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.03 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $15.81 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.92 billion. Merck &amp; Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 41.05% and a net margin of 25.79%. Merck &amp; Co., Inc. has set its FY 2025 guidance at 8.870-8.970 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that  Merck &amp; Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current fiscal year. </p><h2>Hedge Funds Weigh In On Merck &amp; Co., Inc.</h2><ul><li>Moderna  Stock Looks Ripe for a Short Squeeze</li></ul><p>A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of MRK. Legend Financial Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in  Merck &amp; Co., Inc. in the second quarter worth about $25,000.  Barnes Dennig Private Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in  Merck &amp; Co., Inc. in the first quarter worth about $27,000.  Kilter Group LLC bought a new position in  Merck &amp; Co., Inc. in the second quarter worth about $27,000.  Bare Financial Services Inc lifted its holdings in  Merck &amp; Co., Inc. by 51.9% in the second quarter. Bare Financial Services Inc now owns 366 shares of the company's stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 125 shares during the last quarter.  Finally, Evolution Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in  Merck &amp; Co., Inc. in the second quarter worth about $31,000. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds. </p><h2>About Merck &amp; Co., Inc.</h2> (Get Free Report)<p>Merck &amp; Co, Inc is a health care company, which engages in the provision of health solutions through its prescription medicines, vaccines, biologic therapies, animal health, and consumer care products. It operates through the following segments: Pharmaceutical, Animal Health, and Other. The Pharmaceutical segment includes human health pharmaceutical and vaccine products.</p><h2>Read More</h2><ul><li>Five stocks we like better than Merck &amp; Co., Inc.</li><li>How to Plot Fibonacci Price Inflection Levels </li><li>5 Healthcare Plays Powering the Sector’s Big Comeback</li><li>What Are Some of the Best Large-Cap Stocks to Buy?</li><li>Rocket Lab: A Space Giant Hitting New Highs—Time to Chase?</li><li>What is the FTSE 100 index? </li><li>Lowe’s vs. Home Depot: Which Benefits More From Lower Rates?</li></ul><p><img src="https://imageproxy.pbkrs.com/https://www.marketbeat.com/scripts/RatingsAndPriceTargetChart.ashx/query-UHJlZml4PU5ZU0UmU3ltYm9sPU1SSw?x-oss-process=image/auto-orient,1/interlace,1/resize,w_1440,h_1440/quality,q_95/format,jpg" width="650" height="330" original-src="https://imageproxy.pbkrs.com/https://www.marketbeat.com/scripts/RatingsAndPriceTargetChart.ashx/query-UHJlZml4PU5ZU0UmU3ltYm9sPU1SSw"/></p><p><em>This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.</em></p><h2>Should You Invest $1,000 in Merck &amp; Co., Inc. Right Now?</h2><p>Before you consider Merck &amp; Co., Inc., you'll want to hear this.</p><p>MarketBeat keeps track of Wall Street's top-rated and best performing research analysts and the stocks they recommend to their clients on a daily basis. MarketBeat has identified the five stocks that top analysts are quietly whispering to their clients to buy now before the broader market catches on... and Merck &amp; Co., Inc. wasn't on the list.</p><p>While Merck &amp; Co., Inc. currently has a Hold rating among analysts, top-rated analysts believe these five stocks are better buys.</p><p>View The Five Stocks Here</p>                  </div>

<p>Weiss Ratings has reiterated a "hold (C-)" rating for Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK). Other analysts have also adjusted their target prices, with Wells Fargo lowering it from $97 to $90, and Morgan Stanley from $99 to $98. The stock opened at $86.39, with a 12-month low of $73.31 and a high of $111.58. Merck reported $2.13 EPS for the last quarter, beating estimates, and has set FY 2025 guidance at 8.870-8.970 EPS. 76.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.</p>

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) Given Hold (C-) Rating at Weiss Ratings