Trending NewsTrending NewsMost-Upgraded StocksMost-UpgradedNYSE:MRK Merck & Co., Inc. (MRK) Stock Price, News & Analysis $145.52 +3.14 (+2.21%) Closing price 10/9/2026 03:59 PM EasternExtended Trading$146.15 +0.62 (+0.43%) As of 10/9/2026 07:57 PM Eastern Extended trading is trading that happens on electronic markets outside of regular trading hours. This is a fair market value extended hours price provided by Massive. Learn more. Add Compare Share Share Stock Analysis Stock AnalysisAnalyst ForecastsChartCompetitorsDividendEarningsFDA EventsFinancialsInsider TradesNews and TrendsOptions ChainOwnershipSEC FilingsShort Interest About Merck & Co., Inc. Stock (NYSE:MRK) View Price History Chart DataSkip Price History Chart 1 Day 5 Days 30 Days 90 Days 1 Year Advanced 1 Day 1 Day 5 Days 30 Days 90 Days 1 Year Advanced Show volume Show extended hours Get Merck & Co., Inc. alerts:Sign Up Key Stats Today's Range$141.36▼$146.6850-Day Range$127.72▼$156.5452-Week Range$82.01▼$156.92Volume9.28 million shsAverage Volume9.87 million shsMarket Capitalization$359.03 billionP/E Ratio116.42Dividend Yield2.34%Price Target$151.32Consensus RatingModerate Buy Company Overview Merck & Co., Inc. is a global healthcare company that develops and markets prescription medicines, vaccines, and animal-health products. The company serves patients, healthcare providers, and customers in markets around the world, with research and commercial operations spanning multiple geographic regions. Its pharmaceutical portfolio includes oncology, infectious-disease, cardiovascular, immunology, and other therapeutic areas. Key products include Keytruda, an oncology treatment; Gardasil, a human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine; Januvia and Janumet for type 2 diabetes; Bridion for anesthesia-related use; and Winrevair for pulmonary arterial hypertension. Merck also operates an animal-health business that provides veterinary pharmaceuticals, vaccines, and health-management solutions for livestock and companion animals. Founded in 1891, Merck & Co. is headquartered in Rahway, New Jersey. It is a separate company from Merck KGaA, the Germany-based healthcare and life-sciences company. Robert M. Davis has served as Merck & Co.’s chairman and chief executive officer since 2021.AI Generated. May Contain Errors. Read More Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Analysis - MarketRank™See Top-Rated MarketRank™ Stocks92nd Percentile Overall ScoreMRK MarketRank™: Merck & Co., Inc. scored higher than 92% of companies evaluated by MarketBeat, and ranked 25th out of 883 stocks in the healthcare sector. Scores are calculated by averaging available category scores, with extra weight given to analysis and valuation. Analyst's Opinion2.6 / 5Analyst RatingModerate Buy Consensus RatingMerck & Co., Inc. has received a consensus rating of Moderate Buy. The company's average rating score is 2.63, and is based on no strong buy ratings, 17 buy ratings, 10 hold ratings, and no sell ratings.Upside/DownsideThe consensus price target for Merck & Co., Inc. is close to its current price, suggesting limited near-term upside or downside.Amount of Analyst CoverageMerck & Co., Inc. has been the subject of 21 research reports in the past 90 days, demonstrating strong analyst interest in this stock.Read more about Merck & Co., Inc.'s stock forecast and price target. Earnings and Valuation2.5 / 5Proj. Earnings Growth251.13% Earnings GrowthEarnings for Merck & Co., Inc. are expected to grow by 251.13% in the coming year, from $2.66 to $9.34 per share.Price to Earnings Ratio vs. the MarketThe P/E ratio of Merck & Co., Inc. is 116.42, which means that it is trading at a more expensive P/E ratio than the market average P/E ratio of about 39.06.Price to Earnings Ratio vs. SectorThe P/E ratio of Merck & Co., Inc. is 116.42, which means that it is trading at a less expensive P/E ratio than the Healthcare sector average P/E ratio of about 275.30.Price to Earnings Growth RatioMerck & Co., Inc. has a PEG Ratio of 6.55. PEG Ratios above 1 indicate that a company could be overvalued.Price to Book Value per Share RatioMerck & Co., Inc. has a P/B Ratio of 6.86. P/B Ratios above 3 indicate that a company could be overvalued with respect to its assets and liabilities.Read more about Merck & Co., Inc.'s valuation and earnings. Short Interest5.0 / 5Short Interest LevelHealthy Percentage of Shares Shorted1.15% of the float of Merck & Co., Inc. has been sold short.Short Interest Ratio / Days to CoverMerck & Co., Inc. has a short interest ratio ("days to cover") of 2.53, which is generally considered an acceptable ratio of short interest to trading volume.Change versus previous monthShort interest in Merck & Co., Inc. has recently decreased by 17.89%, indicating that investor sentiment is improving significantly. Dividend3.3 / 5Dividend StrengthStrong Dividend YieldMerck & Co., Inc. pays a meaningful dividend of 2.34%, higher than the bottom 25% of all stocks that pay dividends.Dividend GrowthMerck & Co., Inc. has been increasing its dividend for 14 years.Dividend CoverageThe dividend payout ratio of Merck & Co., Inc. is 272.00%. Payout ratios above 75% are not desirable because they may not be sustainable.Dividend SustainabilityBased on earnings estimates, Merck & Co., Inc. will have a dividend payout ratio of 36.40% next year. This indicates that Merck & Co., Inc. will be able to sustain or increase its dividend.Read more about Merck & Co., Inc.'s dividend. News and Social Media3.7 / 5News Sentiment0.96 News SentimentMerck & Co., Inc. has a news sentiment score of 0.96. This score is calculated as an average of sentiment of articles about the company over the last seven days and ranges from 2 (good news) to -2 (bad news). This is a higher news sentiment than the 0.66 average news sentiment score of Healthcare companies.News Coverage This WeekMarketBeat has tracked 47 news articles for Merck & Co., Inc. this week, compared to 9 articles on an average week.Search InterestOnly 50 people have searched for MRK on MarketBeat in the last 30 days. This is a decrease of -23% compared to the previous 30 days.MarketBeat Follows34 people have added Merck & Co., Inc. to their MarketBeat watchlist in the last 30 days. This is an increase of 3% compared to the previous 30 days. Company Ownership1.4 / 5Insider TradingSelling Shares Insider Buying vs. Insider SellingIn the past three months, Merck & Co., Inc. insiders have sold more of their company's stock than they have bought. Specifically, they have bought $0.00 in company stock and sold $29,977,783.00 in company stock.Percentage Held by Insiders0.17% of the stock of Merck & Co., Inc. is held by insiders.Percentage Held by Institutions76.07% of the stock of Merck & Co., Inc. is held by institutions. High institutional ownership can be a signal of strong market trust in this company.Read more about Merck & Co., Inc.'s insider trading history. 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Unsubscribe at any time by replying "STOP" to any text message that you receive from MarketBeat or by visiting our mailing preferences page. Read our full terms of service and privacy policy. MRK Stock News HeadlinesMerck Presents One-Year Results from the Pivotal Phase 2b/3 BRUNELLO Study Evaluating Remigromig, a Tri-specific Agonist of the Wingless-related Integration Site (Wnt) Pathway, in Adults with Diabetic2 minutes ago | gurufocus.comMerck Presents One-Year Results from the Pivotal Phase 2b/3 BRUNELLO Study Evaluating Remigromig, a Tri-specific Agonist of the Wingless-related Integration Site (Wnt) Pathway, in Adults with Diabetic Macular Edema at AAO 20263 hours ago | finance.yahoo.comA simple options setup that cuts through the noiseIan Cooper says most options traders overcomplicate the process, juggling countless indicators, strategies, and predictions. He argues a simpler approach can work just as well. His free report, The Simple Path To Success With Options, breaks down a repeatable trade setup, common rookie mistakes, and step-by-step blueprints designed to cut through market noise. No complex charts. No guesswork. Just a straightforward setup anyone can learn.October 10 at 1:00 AM | TradeWins (Ad)Merck Presents One-Year Results from the Pivotal Phase 2b/3 BRUNELLO Study Evaluating Remigromig, a Tri-specific Agonist of the Wingless-related Integration Site (Wnt) Pathway, in Adults with Diabetic Macular Edema at AAO 2026October 10 at 6:10 PM | businesswire.comCantor Fitzgerald Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) StockOctober 10 at 2:36 AM | americanbankingnews.com3 Income Stocks Under $30 That Yield More Than the 10-Year Treasury Note (MRK)With the 10-year Treasury yielding around 5.3%, Pfizer, Energy Transfer, and Plains All American offer stocks under $30 with dividend yields between 6% and 7%.October 3, 2026 | marketbeat.com3 Healthcare Dividend Stocks Offering More Than Just Income (MRK)AbbVie, Johnson & Johnson and Merck offer growing dividends alongside healthcare pipeline catalysts, regulatory approvals and rising analyst price targets heading into 2027.September 30, 2026 | marketbeat.comBlue-Chip Stocks Are Looking Anything But Boring With Dividends and Big 2026 Gains (MRK)Coca-Cola, Chevron, and Merck have outperformed the S&P 500 in 2026, each pairing strong share-price gains with growing dividends backed by solid fundamentals.September 13, 2026 | marketbeat.comSee More Headlines MRK Stock Analysis - Frequently Asked Questions How have MRK shares performed this year? Merck & Co., Inc.'s stock was trading at $105.20 at the beginning of the year. Since then, MRK stock has increased by 38.3% and is now trading at $145.5220. How were Merck & Co., Inc.'s earnings last quarter? Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August, 4th. The company reported ($0.13) EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.26) by $0.13. The firm's revenue was up 5.1% on a year-over-year basis. Read the conference call transcript. Is Merck & Co., Inc. buying back stock? Merck & Co., Inc.'s Board of Directors approved a stock repurchase program on Tuesday, January 28th 2025, which permits the company to buy back $10,000,000,000 in shares, according to EventVestor. This means that the company could purchase up to 4.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are typically a sign that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued. Who are Merck & Co., Inc.'s major shareholders? Top institutional shareholders of Merck & Co., Inc. include Mn Services Vermogensbeheer B.V. (0.03%), Cacti Asset Management LLC (0.03%), Douglas Lane & Associates LLC (0.02%) and Rockland Trust Co. (0.02%). Insiders that own company stock include Robert M Davis, Richard R Deluca, Dean Y Li, Caroline Litchfield, Jennifer Zachary, Chirfi Guindo, David Michael Williams, Steven Mizell, Johannes Jacobus Oosthuizen, Joseph Romanelli, David R Maraldo, Dalton E Smart III, Cristal N Downing and Inge G Thulin. View institutional ownership trends. How do I buy shares of Merck & Co., Inc.? Shares of MRK stock can be purchased through any online brokerage account. Popular online brokerages with access to the U.S. stock market include Charles Schwab, E*TRADE, Fidelity, and Vanguard Brokerage Services. What other stocks do shareholders of Merck & Co., Inc. own? Based on aggregate information from My MarketBeat watchlists, some other companies that Merck & Co., Inc. investors own include Chevron (CVX), Salesforce (CRM), Bristol Myers Squibb (BMY), Comcast (CMCSA), Johnson & Johnson (JNJ), AbbVie (ABBV) and Home Depot (HD). Company Calendar Last Earnings8/04/2026Record date for 10/7 Dividend9/15/2026Ex-Dividend for 10/7 Dividend9/15/2026Dividend Payable10/07/2026Today10/10/2026Investor update10/26/2026Next Earnings (Estimated)10/29/2026Fiscal Year End12/31/2026Get Stock Alerts Health Indicator TradeSmith's Health IndicatorA long-term volatility-based measure designed for securities held 12 months or longer.Green: Strong and healthy uptrend with normal pullbacks.Yellow: Significant pullback but still within expected volatility.Red: Dropped beyond expected volatility; considered unhealthy. Green Zone (5m+) 1-Year History Oct 25 Jan 26 Apr 26 Jul 26 Oct 26 MRK's financial health is in the Green zone, according to TradeSmith. MRK has been in this zone for over 5 months. Industry, Sector and Symbol Stock ExchangeNYSE SectorHealthcare Industry Pharmaceuticals Sub-IndustryPharmaceuticals Current SymbolNYSE:MRK CIK310158 Webwww.merck.com Phone(908) 740-4000Fax908-735-1253Employees75,000Year Founded1891Price Target and Rating Average Price Target for Merck & Co., Inc.$151.32 High Price Target$180.00 Low Price Target$92.00 Potential Upside/Downside+4.0%Consensus RatingModerate Buy Rating Score (0-4)2.63 Research Coverage27 Analysts Profitability EPS (Trailing Twelve Months)$1.25 Trailing P/E Ratio116.42 Forward P/E Ratio54.71 P/E Growth6.55Net Income$18.25 billion Net Margins4.77% Pretax Margin8.94% Return on Equity16.73% Return on Assets6.13% Debt Debt-to-Equity Ratio1.22 Current Ratio1.32 Quick Ratio1.10 Sales & Book Value Annual Sales$65.01 billion Price / Sales5.52 Cash Flow$11.41 per share Price / Cash Flow12.75 Book Value$21.22 per share Price / Book6.86Miscellaneous Outstanding Shares2,467,170,000Free Float2,462,978,000Market Cap$359.03 billion OptionableOptionable Beta0.21 Social Links 7 Stocks That Will Be Magnificent in 2026Discover the next wave of investment opportunities with our report, 7 Stocks That Will Be Magnificent in 2026. Explore companies poised to replicate the growth, innovation, and value creation of the tech giants dominating today's markets.Get This Free Report This page (NYSE:MRK) was last updated on 10/10/2026 by MarketBeat.com Staff. 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