3 Stocks to Watch on Wednesday: Merck & Co., Inc. (MRK), United Continental Holdings Inc (UAL) and Parsley Energy Inc (PE)

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Yesterday proved to be a mixed day for U.S. equities as oil lost 2.2%, while consumer discretionary stocks gained 0.4%. The S&P 500 Index was unchanged, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.2% and the Nasdaq Composite gained 0.4%.

3 Stocks to Watch on Wednesday: Merck & Co., Inc. (MRK), United Continental Holdings Inc (UAL) and Parsley Energy Inc (PE)It was a busy afternoon after the bell as two stocks rose late Wednesday in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) and United Continental Holdings Inc (NYSE:UAL), while one was slumping in Parsley Energy Inc (NYSE:PE).

Here’s what you should know:

Merck & Co., Inc. (MRK)

Merck shares were better after the company released an update.

This particular move was regarding the company’s priority review for a lung cancer application. The company said the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) will grant the priority review.

Merck said that the treatment in question is Keytruda, which is a first-line way of helping to ameliorate lung cancer. It works alongside chemotherapy, with the decision date on the application set at May 10.

Dr. Roger Dansey, senior vice president and therapeutic area head of the company’s oncology late-stage development, Merck Research Laboratories said that the company is using monotherapy and combination studies to find new approaches to help patients with lung cancer.

The treatment will help a wide array of types of lung cancer, not just one.

MRK stock grew 3.5% after hours Tuesday.

United Continental Holdings Inc (UAL)

United Airlines stock is up despite some disappointing news surrounding where the company stands in relation to the rest of the industry right now.

Airline Weekly tracked a study of 72 global airlines and determined that three of the top four are extremely efficient as they have low costs of operation while generating a lot of profit.

The only major company that missed the mark in the Airline Weekly piece was United Airlines, which took the infamous title of being the least profitable major airline in the U.S.

Among all 72 ranked carriers, United Airlines came in at number 22 in terms of its operating margin with a 14% figure. It was on the bottom of many financial categories.

UAL shares gained 3% after the bell yesterday.

Parsley Energy Inc (PE)

Parsley Energy shares were lower on the company’s Tuesday announcement.

The company announced a secondary offering of its shares. The independent oil and natural gas corporation said it would be issuing 20 million shares to stakeholders.

Underwriters will get more opportunity to invest in Parsley Energy, as there are 3 million optional shares that they will have access to. The company has about 180 million shares outstanding.

PE stock fell 4% after yesterday’s market close.

As of this writing, Karl Utermohlen did not hold a position in any of the aforementioned securities.

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Article printed from InvestorPlace Media, https://investorplace.com/2017/01/3-stocks-watch-wednesday-merck-co-inc-mrk-united-continental-holdings-inc-ual-parsley-energy-inc-pe-2/.

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