MRK Merck & Co., Inc. — dividend yield, history & ex-dividend dates
Merck & Co., Inc. is a global healthcare leader with operations spanning two core divisions: Pharmaceuticals and Animal Health. The Pharmaceutical segment is dedicated to human health, offering a broad spectrum of medicinal products. These cover crucial therapeutic areas such as oncology, acute hospital care, immunology, neuroscience, virology, cardiovascular conditions, and diabetes. This division also develops vital preventive vaccines for pediatric, adolescent, and adult populations. Meanwhile, the Animal Health segment focuses on the research, development, manufacturing, and marketing of veterinary medications, vaccines, and comprehensive health management solutions for animals. This division further provides innovative digital products designed for animal identification, traceability, and continuous monitoring. Merck's extensive clientele encompasses drug wholesalers, pharmacies, hospitals, and government agencies. It also serves managed healthcare organizations, including health maintenance organizations (HMOs) and pharmacy benefit managers, as well as various other institutional clients. Additionally, the company supplies products to individual physicians and their distributors, veterinarians, and livestock producers. The organization actively engages in strategic collaborations with companies such as AstraZeneca PLC, Bayer AG, Eisai Co., Ltd., Ridgeback Biotherapeutics, and Gilead Sciences, Inc. These partnerships are specifically aimed at the joint development and commercialization of prolonged-acting therapies for HIV. Established in 1891, Merck & Co., Inc. maintains its corporate headquarters in Kenilworth, New Jersey.
Dividend Snapshot
Key Metrics
Current Yield
2.36%
The annual dividend as a percentage of the share price. A 3% yield is about $3 of dividends a year for every $100 invested at today's price.Annualized Dividend
$3.4000
The most recent payment scaled to a full year by how often it's paid. A $0.25 quarterly dividend annualizes to $1.00.Frequency
Q Quarterly
How often the dividend is paid: Q = quarterly (4x a year), M = monthly, S = semi-annual, A = annual.Rank Score
60.3
Our 0-100 house score blending yield, payout safety, growth and momentum. Higher means a stronger profile on those factors in our model — a research score, not advice or a recommendation to buy.RSI (14)
50
Relative Strength Index (0-100), a price-momentum gauge. Above 70 is often called 'overbought', below 30 'oversold'. A technical signal, not a dividend metric.52-Week Range
$77.60 – $156.45
The lowest and highest price over the past year — shows where today's price sits in its recent range.Payout Ratio
44.79%
The share of GAAP earnings paid out as dividends. Lower leaves more cushion; above 100% means paying out more than the company earns. It shows n/a for BDCs, REITs and funds, which pay out of cash flow / net investment income rather than GAAP earnings, so this ratio doesn't apply.Years Paying
56
How many years of payments we have on record. This can understate very long histories where our data doesn't reach far enough back.Price / Book
5.01
Price-to-book ratio: share price divided by book value per share. A rough valuation gauge, most useful for asset-heavy sectors like REITs, banks and insurers.S.A.F.E. Dividend Read
Quote & Key Data
Dividend Growth
Why the Yield Moved (90 Days)
MRK's dividend yield fell from 2.95% to 2.36% over the past ~90 days (-0.59 pp). Of that move, +0.00 pp came from changes in the dividend rate and -0.59 pp from the share price ($115.17 → $143.94). A yield that rises because the price fell is not an improvement in the payout itself.
Yield vs Its Own History
Across 335 daily observations over the past 16 months, MRK's current yield is higher than approximately 5% of them. Our stored price history for MRK covers the past 16 months; 3- and 5-year averages are not yet computable from it and are deliberately not shown.
Adjusted Price History
Dividend History
Dividend Payment History
Ex-dividend calendar →| Amount | Type | Declared | Ex-Date | Record | Pay |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| $0.8500 Q | Regular | Jul 29, 2026 | Sep 15, 2026 | Sep 15, 2026 | Oct 07, 2026 |
| $0.8500 Q | Regular | May 26, 2026 | Jun 15, 2026 | Jun 15, 2026 | Jul 08, 2026 |
| $0.8500 Q | Regular | Jan 27, 2026 | Mar 16, 2026 | Mar 16, 2026 | Apr 07, 2026 |
| $0.8500 Q | Regular | Nov 18, 2025 | Dec 15, 2025 | Dec 15, 2025 | Jan 08, 2026 |
| $0.8100 Q | Regular | Jul 22, 2025 | Sep 15, 2025 | Sep 15, 2025 | Oct 07, 2025 |
| $0.8100 Q | Regular | May 27, 2025 | Jun 16, 2025 | Jun 16, 2025 | Jul 08, 2025 |
| $0.8100 Q | Regular | Jan 28, 2025 | Mar 17, 2025 | Mar 17, 2025 | Apr 07, 2025 |
| $0.8100 Q | Regular | Nov 19, 2024 | Dec 16, 2024 | Dec 16, 2024 | Jan 08, 2025 |
| $0.7700 Q | Regular | Jul 23, 2024 | Sep 16, 2024 | Sep 16, 2024 | Oct 07, 2024 |
| $0.7700 Q | Regular | May 28, 2024 | Jun 17, 2024 | Jun 17, 2024 | Jul 08, 2024 |
| $0.7700 Q | Regular | Jan 23, 2024 | Mar 14, 2024 | Mar 15, 2024 | Apr 05, 2024 |
| $0.7700 Q | Regular | Nov 28, 2023 | Dec 14, 2023 | Dec 15, 2023 | Jan 08, 2024 |
| $0.7300 Q | Regular | Jul 25, 2023 | Sep 14, 2023 | Sep 15, 2023 | Oct 06, 2023 |
| $0.7300 Q | Regular | May 23, 2023 | Jun 14, 2023 | Jun 15, 2023 | Jul 10, 2023 |
| $0.7300 Q | Regular | Jan 24, 2023 | Mar 14, 2023 | Mar 15, 2023 | Apr 10, 2023 |
| $0.7300 Q | Regular | Nov 29, 2022 | Dec 14, 2022 | Dec 15, 2022 | Jan 09, 2023 |
| $0.6900 Q | Regular | Jul 26, 2022 | Sep 14, 2022 | Sep 15, 2022 | Oct 07, 2022 |
| $0.6900 Q | Regular | May 24, 2022 | Jun 14, 2022 | Jun 15, 2022 | Jul 08, 2022 |
| $0.6900 Q | Regular | Jan 25, 2022 | Mar 14, 2022 | Mar 15, 2022 | Apr 07, 2022 |
| $0.6900 Q | Regular | Nov 30, 2021 | Dec 14, 2021 | Dec 15, 2021 | Jan 07, 2022 |
| $0.6500 Q | Regular | Jul 27, 2021 | Sep 14, 2021 | Sep 15, 2021 | Oct 07, 2021 |
| $0.6500 Q | Regular | May 25, 2021 | Jun 14, 2021 | Jun 15, 2021 | Jul 07, 2021 |
| $0.6500 Q | Regular | Jan 26, 2021 | Mar 12, 2021 | Mar 15, 2021 | Apr 07, 2021 |
| $0.6500 Q | Regular | Nov 17, 2020 | Dec 14, 2020 | Dec 15, 2020 | Jan 08, 2021 |
| $0.6100 Q | Regular | Jul 28, 2020 | Sep 14, 2020 | Sep 15, 2020 | Oct 07, 2020 |
| $0.6100 Q | Regular | May 26, 2020 | Jun 12, 2020 | Jun 15, 2020 | Jul 07, 2020 |
| $0.6100 Q | Regular | Jan 28, 2020 | Mar 13, 2020 | Mar 16, 2020 | Apr 07, 2020 |
| $0.6100 Q | Regular | Nov 19, 2019 | Dec 13, 2019 | Dec 16, 2019 | Jan 08, 2020 |
| $0.5500 Q | Regular | Jul 23, 2019 | Sep 13, 2019 | Sep 16, 2019 | Oct 07, 2019 |
| $0.5500 Q | Regular | May 28, 2019 | Jun 14, 2019 | Jun 17, 2019 | Jul 08, 2019 |
| $0.5500 Q | Regular | Jan 29, 2019 | Mar 14, 2019 | Mar 15, 2019 | Apr 05, 2019 |
| $0.5500 Q | Regular | Oct 25, 2018 | Dec 14, 2018 | Dec 17, 2018 | Jan 08, 2019 |
| $0.4800 Q | Regular | Jul 24, 2018 | Sep 14, 2018 | Sep 17, 2018 | Oct 05, 2018 |
| $0.4800 Q | Regular | May 22, 2018 | Jun 14, 2018 | Jun 15, 2018 | Jul 09, 2018 |
| $0.4800 Q | Regular | Jan 23, 2018 | Mar 14, 2018 | Mar 15, 2018 | Apr 06, 2018 |
| $0.4800 Q | Regular | Nov 28, 2017 | Dec 14, 2017 | Dec 15, 2017 | Jan 08, 2018 |
| $0.4700 Q | Regular | Jul 26, 2017 | Sep 14, 2017 | Sep 15, 2017 | Oct 06, 2017 |
| $0.4700 Q | Regular | May 23, 2017 | Jun 13, 2017 | Jun 15, 2017 | Jul 10, 2017 |
| $0.4700 Q | Regular | Mar 01, 2017 | Mar 13, 2017 | Mar 15, 2017 | Apr 07, 2017 |
| $0.4700 Q | Regular | Nov 22, 2016 | Dec 13, 2016 | Dec 15, 2016 | Jan 09, 2017 |
| $0.4600 Q | Regular | Jul 26, 2016 | Sep 13, 2016 | Sep 15, 2016 | Oct 07, 2016 |
| $0.4600 Q | Regular | May 24, 2016 | Jun 13, 2016 | Jun 15, 2016 | Jul 08, 2016 |
| $0.4600 Q | Regular | Feb 23, 2016 | Mar 11, 2016 | Mar 15, 2016 | Apr 07, 2016 |
| $0.4600 Q | Regular | Nov 24, 2015 | Dec 11, 2015 | Dec 15, 2015 | Jan 08, 2016 |
| $0.4500 Q | Regular | Jul 22, 2015 | Sep 11, 2015 | Sep 15, 2015 | Oct 07, 2015 |
| $0.4500 Q | Regular | May 26, 2015 | Jun 11, 2015 | Jun 15, 2015 | Jul 08, 2015 |
| $0.4500 Q | Regular | Feb 24, 2015 | Mar 12, 2015 | Mar 16, 2015 | Apr 08, 2015 |
| $0.4500 Q | Regular | Nov 25, 2014 | Dec 11, 2014 | Dec 15, 2014 | Jan 08, 2015 |
| $0.4400 Q | Regular | Jul 23, 2014 | Sep 11, 2014 | Sep 15, 2014 | Oct 07, 2014 |
| $0.4400 Q | Regular | May 27, 2014 | Jun 12, 2014 | Jun 16, 2014 | Jul 08, 2014 |
| $0.4400 Q | Regular | Feb 25, 2014 | Mar 13, 2014 | Mar 17, 2014 | Apr 07, 2014 |
| $0.4400 Q | Regular | Nov 26, 2013 | Dec 12, 2013 | Dec 16, 2013 | Jan 08, 2014 |
| $0.4300 Q | Regular | Jul 25, 2013 | Sep 12, 2013 | Sep 16, 2013 | Oct 07, 2013 |
| $0.4300 Q | Regular | May 28, 2013 | Jun 13, 2013 | Jun 17, 2013 | Jul 08, 2013 |
| $0.4300 Q | Regular | Feb 26, 2013 | Mar 13, 2013 | Mar 15, 2013 | Apr 05, 2013 |
| $0.4300 Q | Regular | Nov 27, 2012 | Dec 13, 2012 | Dec 17, 2012 | Jan 08, 2013 |
| $0.4200 Q | Regular | Jul 24, 2012 | Sep 13, 2012 | Sep 17, 2012 | Oct 05, 2012 |
| $0.4200 Q | Regular | May 23, 2012 | Jun 13, 2012 | Jun 15, 2012 | Jul 09, 2012 |
| $0.4200 Q | Regular | Feb 29, 2012 | Mar 13, 2012 | Mar 15, 2012 | Apr 06, 2012 |
| $0.4200 Q | Regular | Nov 11, 2011 | Dec 13, 2011 | Dec 15, 2011 | Jan 09, 2012 |
| $0.3800 Q | Regular | Jul 27, 2011 | Sep 13, 2011 | Sep 15, 2011 | Oct 07, 2011 |
| $0.3800 Q | Regular | May 25, 2011 | Jun 13, 2011 | Jun 15, 2011 | Jul 08, 2011 |
| $0.3800 Q | Regular | Feb 23, 2011 | Mar 11, 2011 | Mar 15, 2011 | Apr 07, 2011 |
| $0.3800 Q | Regular | Nov 24, 2010 | Dec 13, 2010 | Dec 15, 2010 | Jan 07, 2011 |
| $0.3800 Q | Regular | Jul 28, 2010 | Sep 13, 2010 | Sep 15, 2010 | Oct 07, 2010 |
| $0.3800 Q | Regular | May 27, 2010 | Jun 11, 2010 | Jun 15, 2010 | Jul 08, 2010 |
| $0.3800 Q | Regular | Feb 24, 2010 | Mar 11, 2010 | Mar 15, 2010 | Apr 07, 2010 |
| $0.3800 Q | Regular | Nov 25, 2009 | Dec 11, 2009 | Dec 15, 2009 | Jan 08, 2010 |
| $0.3800 Q | Regular | Jul 29, 2009 | Sep 02, 2009 | Sep 04, 2009 | Oct 01, 2009 |
| $0.3800 Q | Regular | May 27, 2009 | Jun 04, 2009 | Jun 08, 2009 | Jul 01, 2009 |
| $0.3800 Q | Regular | Feb 24, 2009 | Mar 04, 2009 | Mar 06, 2009 | Apr 01, 2009 |
| $0.3800 Q | Regular | Nov 25, 2008 | Dec 03, 2008 | Dec 05, 2008 | Jan 02, 2009 |
| $0.3800 Q | Regular | Jul 22, 2008 | Sep 03, 2008 | Sep 05, 2008 | Oct 01, 2008 |
| $0.3800 Q | Regular | May 27, 2008 | Jun 04, 2008 | Jun 06, 2008 | Jul 01, 2008 |
| $0.3800 Q | Regular | Feb 26, 2008 | Mar 05, 2008 | Mar 07, 2008 | Apr 01, 2008 |
| $0.3800 Q | Regular | Nov 27, 2007 | Dec 05, 2007 | Dec 07, 2007 | Jan 02, 2008 |
| $0.3800 Q | Regular | Jul 24, 2007 | Sep 05, 2007 | Sep 07, 2007 | Oct 01, 2007 |
| $0.3800 Q | Regular | May 22, 2007 | Jun 06, 2007 | Jun 08, 2007 | Jul 02, 2007 |
| $0.3800 Q | Regular | Feb 27, 2007 | Mar 07, 2007 | Mar 09, 2007 | Apr 02, 2007 |
| $0.3800 Q | Regular | Nov 28, 2006 | Dec 06, 2006 | Dec 08, 2006 | Jan 02, 2007 |
| $0.3800 Q | Regular | Jul 25, 2006 | Aug 30, 2006 | Sep 01, 2006 | Oct 02, 2006 |
| $0.3800 Q | Regular | May 23, 2006 | May 31, 2006 | Jun 02, 2006 | Jul 03, 2006 |
| $0.3800 Q | Regular | Feb 28, 2006 | Mar 08, 2006 | Mar 10, 2006 | Apr 03, 2006 |
| $0.3800 Q | Regular | Nov 22, 2005 | Nov 30, 2005 | Dec 02, 2005 | Jan 03, 2006 |
| $0.3800 Q | Regular | Jul 26, 2005 | Aug 31, 2005 | Sep 02, 2005 | Oct 03, 2005 |
| $0.3626 Q | Regular | May 24, 2005 | Jun 01, 2005 | Jun 03, 2005 | Jul 01, 2005 |
| $0.3800 Q | Regular | Feb 22, 2005 | Mar 02, 2005 | Mar 04, 2005 | Apr 01, 2005 |
| $0.3626 Q | Regular | Nov 23, 2004 | Dec 01, 2004 | Dec 03, 2004 | Jan 03, 2005 |
| $0.3626 Q | Regular | Jul 27, 2004 | Sep 01, 2004 | Sep 03, 2004 | Oct 01, 2004 |
| $0.3700 Q | Regular | May 25, 2004 | Jun 02, 2004 | Jun 04, 2004 | Jul 01, 2004 |
| $0.3700 Q | Regular | Feb 24, 2004 | Mar 03, 2004 | Mar 05, 2004 | Apr 01, 2004 |
| $0.3700 Q | Regular | Nov 25, 2003 | Dec 03, 2003 | Dec 05, 2003 | Jan 02, 2004 |
| $0.3700 Q | Regular | Jul 22, 2003 | Sep 03, 2003 | Sep 05, 2003 | Oct 01, 2003 |
| $2.8760 Q | Regular | - | Aug 20, 2003 | - | - |
| $0.3600 Q | Regular | May 27, 2003 | Jun 04, 2003 | Jun 06, 2003 | Jul 01, 2003 |
| $0.3600 Q | Regular | Feb 25, 2003 | Mar 05, 2003 | Mar 07, 2003 | Apr 01, 2003 |
| $0.3600 Q | Regular | Nov 26, 2002 | Dec 04, 2002 | Dec 06, 2002 | Jan 02, 2003 |
| $0.3600 Q | Regular | Jul 23, 2002 | Sep 04, 2002 | Sep 06, 2002 | Oct 01, 2002 |
| $0.3500 Q | Regular | May 28, 2002 | Jun 05, 2002 | Jun 07, 2002 | Jul 01, 2002 |
| $0.3500 Q | Regular | Feb 26, 2002 | Mar 06, 2002 | Mar 08, 2002 | Apr 01, 2002 |
| $0.3500 Q | Regular | Nov 27, 2001 | Dec 05, 2001 | Dec 07, 2001 | Jan 02, 2002 |
| $0.3500 Q | Regular | Jul 24, 2001 | Aug 30, 2001 | Sep 04, 2001 | Oct 01, 2001 |
| $0.3400 Q | Regular | May 22, 2001 | May 31, 2001 | Jun 04, 2001 | Jul 02, 2001 |
| $0.3400 Q | Regular | Feb 27, 2001 | Mar 07, 2001 | Mar 09, 2001 | Apr 02, 2001 |
| $0.3400 Q | Regular | Nov 28, 2000 | Dec 06, 2000 | Dec 08, 2000 | Jan 02, 2001 |
| $0.3400 Q | Regular | Jul 25, 2000 | Aug 30, 2000 | Sep 01, 2000 | Oct 02, 2000 |
| $0.2900 Q | Regular | May 22, 2000 | May 31, 2000 | Jun 02, 2000 | Jul 03, 2000 |
| $0.2767 Q | Regular | Feb 22, 2000 | Mar 01, 2000 | Mar 03, 2000 | Apr 03, 2000 |
| $0.2767 Q | Regular | Nov 23, 1999 | Dec 01, 1999 | Dec 03, 1999 | Jan 03, 2000 |
| $0.2767 Q | Regular | Jul 27, 1999 | Sep 01, 1999 | Sep 03, 1999 | Oct 01, 1999 |
| $0.2700 Q | Regular | May 25, 1999 | Jun 02, 1999 | Jun 04, 1999 | Jul 01, 1999 |
| $0.2700 Q | Regular | Feb 23, 1999 | Mar 03, 1999 | Mar 05, 1999 | Apr 01, 1999 |
| $0.5400 Q | Regular | Nov 24, 1998 | Dec 02, 1998 | Dec 04, 1998 | Jan 04, 1999 |
| $0.5400 Q | Regular | Jul 28, 1998 | Sep 02, 1998 | Sep 04, 1998 | Oct 01, 1998 |
| $0.4500 Q | Regular | May 26, 1998 | Jun 03, 1998 | Jun 05, 1998 | Jul 01, 1998 |
| $0.4500 Q | Regular | Feb 24, 1998 | Mar 04, 1998 | Mar 06, 1998 | Apr 01, 1998 |
| $0.4500 Q | Regular | Nov 25, 1997 | Dec 03, 1997 | Dec 05, 1997 | Jan 02, 1998 |
| $0.4500 Q | Regular | Jul 22, 1997 | Sep 03, 1997 | Sep 05, 1997 | Oct 01, 1997 |
| $0.4200 Q | Regular | May 28, 1997 | Jun 05, 1997 | Jun 09, 1997 | Jul 01, 1997 |
| $0.4200 Q | Regular | Feb 25, 1997 | Mar 05, 1997 | Mar 07, 1997 | Apr 01, 1997 |
Peer Comparison
Selected Drug Manufacturers - General dividend payers we cover, strongest DividendRank first — for context, not a recommendation.
| Ticker | Name | Yield | 5-Yr Growth | Streak | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| OPHLF | Ono Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. | 3.45% | 0.4% | 0 yrs | 70 |
| ALPMF | Astellas Pharma Inc. | 3.27% | 4.0% | 0 yrs | 68 |
| DSKYF | Daiichi Sankyo Company, Limited | 3.67% | 18.5% | 4 yrs | 66 |
| SNPHF | Santen Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. | 2.08% | -1.2% | 3 yrs | 64 |
Related Guides & Lists
MRK dividend — frequently asked questions
Does Merck & Co., Inc. pay a dividend?
Yes. Merck & Co., Inc. (MRK) currently pays a dividend. The annualized dividend is about $3.40 per share, a yield of approximately 2.36%.
What is Merck & Co., Inc.'s dividend yield?
Merck & Co., Inc.'s dividend yield is approximately 2.36%, based on the most recent regular payment annualized against the current share price. Yields move as the share price changes.
How often does Merck & Co., Inc. pay dividends?
Merck & Co., Inc. pays dividends quarterly — 4 times per year.
When is Merck & Co., Inc.'s next ex-dividend date?
The next ex-dividend date on record for Merck & Co., Inc. is September 15, 2026. The associated payment is $0.8500 per share; you must own the shares before the ex-dividend date to receive it.
How long has Merck & Co., Inc. paid dividends?
Merck & Co., Inc. has 56 years of dividend payments on record, and has increased its dividend for 15 consecutive years.
Data updated Sep 13, 2026. This research page is generated from Dividendly's structured market and dividend dataset using the approach described on our methodology and data sources pages. Data is automatically validated using defined rules and may also be periodically reviewed. Research only, not investment advice. Spotted a data error? Report it.