Stock fact sheet · data as of
The Merger Fund - Class A (MERFX): fair value, margin of safety and Wheel Score
Ticker symbol MERFX · Financial Services · Asset Management · United States · Fund / Note
Is MERFX undervalued?
MERFX closed at 17.73 on 5 Nov 2026 against a GLS average fair value of 18.83 - 5.8% below fair value, which our scans read as "fairly priced". 1 of 1 models are above the current price. There is no discount to lean on here, so the margin of safety is not the reason to look at the stock.
Only 1 of the nine models produced a value (DDM); the others need a dividend, positive free cash flow or positive book value the company does not have yet, so the average rests on a narrow base.
MERFX looks like a fund, note or preferred share rather than an operating company, so the nightly engine files it under Fund / Note: the valuation models are not built for it, and its Wheel Score is capped at 45.
Nine valuation models for MERFX
Each model turns the latest filed numbers into a value per share; the GLS fair value is the simple average of the ones that produce a positive number. The last two rows are shown for reference and never enter the average. The Quote page lets you switch any model off and add your own margin of safety.
| Model | Value | vs price | What it measures |
|---|---|---|---|
| DCF | - | - | Present value of the projected free cash flows, discounted at the cost of capital; no value tonight |
| Graham Number | - | - | The most a defensive investor pays for the earnings and book value per share; no value tonight |
| Graham Growth | - | - | Graham's growth formula: EPS × (8.5 + 2 × growth), adjusted for bond yields; no value tonight |
| Lynch | - | - | EPS × the earnings growth rate (PEG of 1), growth capped at 25%; no value tonight |
| GLS Growth | - | - | EPS compounded ten years at the blended growth rate, discounted back at 15% a year; no value tonight |
| 10 Cap | - | - | Owner's earnings (operating cash flow less maintenance capex) capitalised at 10%; no value tonight |
| Payback Time | - | - | Eight years of compounded free cash flow: the price at which the business pays for itself; no value tonight |
| DDM | 18.83 | +6% | Dividend discount model: next year's dividend ÷ (10% − 3% growth); needs a dividend |
| EPV | - | - | Earnings power value: current EPS capitalised at 9% with no growth; no value tonight |
| Zombie (liquidation) | 0.0001 | -100% | Current assets less all liabilities, per share: the balance-sheet floor. Not in the average |
| Wall St target | 0.0000 | -100% | Analysts' average 12-month price target. Not in the average |
Quality and financial health
Financial health is weak: MERFX passes 4 of the nine Piotroski tests. Our scans drop the stock at the health filter; a low score is often the reason a stock looks cheap on the valuation models. There is no GLS Moat score for MERFX: funds, notes and second share lines get none, and so does a company with fewer than two years of accounts on file. The Moat part of the Wheel Score is zero.
Returns on capital are moderate - ROIC 5.3%, ROE 5.3%, ROA 5.3% - with debt at 0.00 times equity and negative free cash flow.
The dividend yield is high at 7.22% (payout ratio 0%). A yield this size is often the market's way of pricing a risk to the payout, so the health score and cash flow matter more than usual.
Institutional ownership scores 5/10, insider activity 5/10 and Congressional trading 5/10 on the GLS smart-money scales.
| Piotroski F-score | 4 / 9 | ROIC | 5.3% |
|---|---|---|---|
| GLS Moat | - / 10 | ROE | 5.3% |
| Debt / equity | 0.00 | ROA | 5.3% |
| Free-cash-flow yield | 0.0% | Payout ratio | 0% |
| Institutions | 5 / 10 | Insiders · Congress | 5 · 5 / 10 |
Wheel Score 14: No options
MERFX has no listed options in the nightly snapshot, so there is nothing to sell and the stock cannot be wheeled however good the business. It fails the first Wheel Trade Filter (options that actually trade), so the score stays under 70 and is shown as "No options" (14 here). The valuation and quality numbers still apply to owning the shares outright.
Volume runs at - a day on a market cap of $2.6B, with a beta of 0.01 - a low beta, so day-to-day moves are smaller than the market's; the Stability part of the Wheel Score rates that fair.
| Filter | Wheel Trade Filter | Result | Detail |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Options that actually trade | Fails | no listed options |
| 2 | A real business, not a gamble | Fails | a fund or note, not a company |
| 3 | Below fair value | Passes | Trading below the nine-model average fair value (margin of safety above 0) |
| 4 | Financially healthy | Fails | Piotroski 4/9 (under 6) |
| 5 | Can repay its debt | Passes | Long-term debt repaid from 3 years of operating cash flow or less (6 for real estate and utilities; banks and insurers are not judged on it) |
| 6 | No serious red flags | Passes | Red Flags score 60 or more out of 100 (earnings, margins, debt, analysts, filings and price checked the same way for every stock) |
| 7 | A premium worth selling | Fails | no implied volatility |
| 8 | Big enough | Passes | Market cap $1 billion or more |
| 9 | Not a penny stock | Passes | Share price $5 or more |
| How it ranks | Rating | From | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Value | Weak | 6% below fair value | |
| Premium | Weak | no option data | |
| Moat | Weak | no moat score | |
| Health | Fair | Piotroski 4/9 | |
| Red Flags | Fair | not scored yet - half marks | |
| Option trading | Weak | no option volume data | |
| Stability | Fair | beta 0.01, $2.6B company |
The Wheel Score ranks ~7,400 US stocks for selling cash-secured puts and covered calls: a stock must pass all 9 Wheel Trade Filters to score 70, and the score then ranks the ones that pass; the Sunday Scan is the top 10. It is updated nightly and is not a recommendation. How the Wheel Score works · the walkthrough lesson shows how it fits into a trade, start to finish.
Upcoming events
No upcoming earnings date is recorded for MERFX in the nightly calendar.
Earnings, dividend, IPO, split and economic calendars for the whole market, filterable to your watchlists.
Similar stocks in Asset Management
The 12 companies below are the closest to The Merger Fund - Class A by market cap within the Asset Management industry, each with its own fact sheet; the Compare page puts up to eight of them side by side.
| Stock | Close | Fair value | MoS | Wheel | Mkt cap |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UTF Cohen & Steers Infrastructure Fund, Inc | 26.41 | 81.62 | +68% | 27No options | $2.6B |
| BDOAX iShares MSCI Total International Index Fund - Class A | 13.85 | - | - | 14No options | $2.5B |
| GDV The Gabelli Dividend & Income Trust | 29.20 | 122.89 | +76% | 33No options | $2.5B |
| ASST Strive, Inc. | 22.92 | - | - | 22Weak | $2.5B |
| LCGNX William Blair Large Cap Growth N | 27.24 | 37.96 | +28% | 24No options | $2.6B |
| CHCLX AB Discovery Growth Fund, Inc. - Class A | 11.29 | 9.61 | -17% | 11No options | $2.5B |
| ABXL Abacus Global Management, Inc. - 9.875% Fixed Rate Senior Notes due 2028 | 25.44 | 20.58 | -24% | 9No options | $2.5B |
| NVG Nuveen AMT-Free Municipal Credit Income Fund | 11.52 | 18.09 | +36% | 27No options | $2.5B |
| AIVFX American Funds International Vantage Fund | 21.52 | 10.03 | -115% | 11No options | $2.7B |
| KLMN Invesco Exchange-Traded Fund Trust II - Invesco MSCI North America Climate ETF | 31.42 | 2.83 | -1009% | 10No options | $2.5B |
| FBTAX Fidelity Advisor Biotechnology Fund Class A | 49.07 | 27.82 | -76% | 16No options | $2.4B |
| OXLCM Oxford Lane Capital Corp. | 24.80 | 70.18 | +65% | 27No options | $2.4B |
⚖ Compare MERFX with 7 of them All Financial Services stocks →
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Start free See the Sunday ScanQuestions about MERFX
Is MERFX undervalued right now?
Not meaningfully: at 17.73 the stock trades within a few percent of the GLS average fair value of 18.83 (5.8% below fair value, data as of 5 Nov 2026).
What is the Wheel Score of MERFX and what does it mean?
MERFX has no listed options in our nightly snapshot, so it cannot be wheeled; it fails the first Wheel Trade Filter (options that actually trade), stays under 70 and is shown as "No options".
What is the GLS fair value for MERFX?
18.83 per share as of 5 Nov 2026 - the simple average of the 1 valuation models (out of nine: DCF, Graham Number, Graham Growth, Lynch, GLS Growth, 10 Cap, Payback Time, DDM and EPV) that produced a positive value. The models run every night on the latest filings; the Quote page lets you switch any of them off and add a margin of safety of your own.
When does The Merger Fund - Class A report earnings next?
No upcoming earnings date is recorded for MERFX in our calendar as of 5 Nov 2026; the Calendars page is refreshed every morning.
Does MERFX have listed options, and how liquid are they?
No. The nightly options snapshot found no listed contracts on MERFX, so the wheel strategy cannot be run on it and the Wheel Score stays under 70.