Merck (MRK)

As of 30 September 2026, short interest in MRK is 28,271,750 shares, down 2,015,597 shares over the last month. Over the last 48 readings it ranged from 23,829,923 shares (29 August 2025) to 41,933,919 shares (15 April 2025). At the reported average volume of 11.2M shares a day that is 2.5 days to cover.

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As of 9 October 2026, the short share of MRK volume is 50.7%, up 18.1 points over the last five sessions. Over the last 30 readings it ranged from 15.1% (24 September 2026) to 63.9% (8 September 2026). The latest reading is 9.7 points above the 30-session average of 41.0%, on 3.0M shares reported.

As of 14 September 2026, the fails-to-deliver balance in MRK is 5,052 shares, down 2,216 shares over the last settlement date. Over the last 30 readings it ranged from 1 share (7 August 2026) to 78,575 shares (13 August 2026). The latest reading sits at the bottom of that range.

Insiders at MRK reported 17 open-market sells worth $30.0M in the last 90 days and no open-market buys. Latest filing: Guindo Chirfi (EVP, Access, Policy & Comms) on 2026-08-13.

Form 4 filings are due within two business days of the trade. Insiders sell for many reasons that say nothing about the company; open-market buys are rarer.

23 Form 144 notices on file for MRK worth $74.4M at the prices reported; 9 in the last 90 days worth $30.0M. Latest: CHIRFI GUINDO filed on 2026-08-13 to sell 10,000 shares ($1.4M) from 2026-08-13.

1 holder reports 5% or more of MRK in its latest filing, on Schedule 13G (passive). The holder is Vanguard Capital Management at 7.5% of the class (186,323,766 shares), filed 2026-04-30 for an event on 2026-03-31.

8 of the 30 tracked managers held MRK at their latest 13F, $6.72B in total at quarter-end prices. Fisher Asset Management is the largest at $4.95B (1.5% of its portfolio) as of 2026-06-30. Over the prior quarter 2 added shares and 6 cut.

Only the 30 tracked managers on the funds hub; a 13F reports long positions in US listed stock at quarter end, 45 days late, and says nothing about shorts or positions sold since.

In Q2 FY 2026 (quarter ended 2026-06-30) Merck reported revenue of $16.61B, up 5.1% from the same quarter a year earlier, and net loss of $1.33B (-0.54 diluted EPS). In FY 2025 it generated $16.47B of operating cash flow and spent $5.08B on buybacks and $8.18B on dividends. As of 2026-06-30, cash was $6.85B against $53.91B of debt.

Quarterly, last 8 quarters

Fiscal years, with buybacks and dividends

Quarters are the three-month figures the company reports; a fourth quarter marked derived is the fiscal year less the three reported quarters, since companies report it only inside the 10-K. Fiscal years are the annual figures. Buybacks are the cash the company paid to repurchase its common stock in the year, not the amount authorized. Balance sheet lines are as of 2026-06-30; shares outstanding as of 2026-07-31 from the cover page.

1 contract action on file for MRK: $1.6M obligated in the last 90 days and $1.6M in the last 12 months across 1 awarding agency. The largest was $1.6M from the Department of Health and Human Services on 2026-09-14 (stockpile storage and rotation eo 14398). This covers the largest contract actions, not every award, and agencies report late.