David Farnsworth Sells 8,155 Shares of Mercury Systems (NASDAQ:MRCY) Stock

Key Points

• EVP David Farnsworth sold 8,155 Mercury Systems shares for approximately $818,000 at an average price of $100.31, reducing his stake by 6.14%. The sale was disclosed as covering tax withholding related to vested equity awards.
• Mercury Systems’ shares fell 3.0% to $91.36 after the company reported adjusted EPS of $0.37, narrowly missing estimates and declining from $0.47 a year earlier, despite revenue rising 6.1% to $289.8 million.
• Analyst sentiment remains mixed: Piper Sandler, Truist, and RBC raised price targets, but the stock carries a consensus “Hold” rating with an average target of $110.10. Strong bookings and backlog growth provide a positive outlook, while weaker cash flow and margin risks remain concerns.

Mercury Systems Inc (NASDAQ:MRCY - Get Free Report) EVP David Farnsworth sold 8,155 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $100.31, for a total value of $818,028.05. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 124,579 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $12,496,519.49. The trade was a 6.14% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards.

Mercury Systems Trading Down 3.0%

Shares of MRCY stock traded down $2.87 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $91.36. 1,117,619 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 675,344. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $108.12 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $94.88. Mercury Systems Inc has a 1-year low of $65.04 and a 1-year high of $128.45. The company has a market cap of $5.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -182.72 and a beta of 0.95. The company has a quick ratio of 2.15, a current ratio of 2.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29.

Mercury Systems (NASDAQ:MRCY - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 18th. The technology company reported $0.37 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.38 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $289.78 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $266.09 million. Mercury Systems had a negative net margin of 3.02% and a positive return on equity of 1.29%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 6.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.47 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Mercury Systems Inc will post 0.77 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Mercury Systems

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System grew its holdings in Mercury Systems by 1.8% during the fourth quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System now owns 7,714 shares of the technology company's stock worth $563,000 after buying an additional 134 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in Mercury Systems by 8.5% during the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,984 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $243,000 after acquiring an additional 155 shares in the last quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund lifted its stake in Mercury Systems by 1.6% during the 4th quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 12,058 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $880,000 after acquiring an additional 187 shares in the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System boosted its holdings in Mercury Systems by 1.3% during the 4th quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 15,211 shares of the technology company's stock worth $1,111,000 after acquiring an additional 195 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Focus Partners Wealth boosted its holdings in Mercury Systems by 3.0% during the 3rd quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 6,929 shares of the technology company's stock worth $536,000 after acquiring an additional 199 shares during the last quarter. 95.99% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Key Headlines Impacting Mercury Systems

Here are the key news stories impacting Mercury Systems this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Mercury reported record fourth-quarter bookings of approximately $660 million, up 93% year over year, with a 2.28 book-to-bill ratio. Backlog surpassed $1.9 billion, rising 38.4% and improving longer-term revenue visibility. Mercury Systems Reports Fourth Quarter and Fiscal 2026 Results
• Positive Sentiment: Revenue increased 6.1% year over year to approximately $289.8 million, well above the roughly $266.1 million analyst estimate. RBC raised its price target to $120, while Piper Sandler lifted its target to $131 and reaffirmed an “Overweight” rating; Baird also forecast substantial appreciation. Royal Bank of Canada Mercury Systems Forecast
• Positive Sentiment: A strategic alliance with Palantir Technologies is intended to automate material planning and factory operations for U.S. military programs. Investors may view the partnership as a potential catalyst for higher production throughput and shorter delivery times. Mercury Systems and Palantir Partnership
• Neutral Sentiment: Multiple executives sold shares in transactions totaling roughly $4.7 million. The filings say the sales covered tax withholding on vested equity awards, limiting their value as a bearish signal, although no insider purchases were reported. Mercury Systems Insider Trading Filing
• Negative Sentiment: Adjusted EPS was $0.37, narrowly missing the $0.38 consensus and falling from $0.47 a year earlier. GAAP EPS was $0.01, adjusted EBITDA declined to $49 million, and free cash flow fell to $29 million, overshadowing the strong bookings and revenue figures. Why Mercury Systems Is Down
• Negative Sentiment: Mercury’s fixed-price contracts expose margins to volatility in advanced semiconductor costs. Rising component expenses could pressure profitability before the company can adjust pricing or supply arrangements. Mercury Systems Fixed-Price Contract Risk

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently issued reports on MRCY. Piper Sandler restated an "overweight" rating and issued a $131.00 target price (up from $126.00) on shares of Mercury Systems in a report on Wednesday. Wall Street Zen downgraded Mercury Systems from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, July 18th. Truist Financial boosted their price target on Mercury Systems from $109.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday. Weiss Ratings restated a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Mercury Systems in a report on Friday, July 17th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price objective on shares of Mercury Systems from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $110.10.

Mercury Systems Company Profile

Mercury Systems, Inc NASDAQ: MRCY is a technology company that designs, manufactures and markets secure processing subsystems for aerospace and defense applications. The company's products are built to address the stringent security, safety and reliability requirements of mission-critical programs, with a focus on radar, electronic warfare, intelligence and other sensor and processing functions. Mercury's offerings encompass rugged embedded computing modules, high-performance radio frequency (RF) and microwave components, digital signal processing subsystems and secure networking solutions.

Since its origins in advanced signal processing, Mercury Systems has expanded its capabilities through a combination of internal development and targeted acquisitions.

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