Merck & Co., Inc.

Merck is a global research‑based pharmaceutical company that discovers, develops and commercializes prescription medicines, vaccines and animal‑health products. It sells human pharmaceuticals and vaccines to wholesalers, hospitals, government bodies and health‑care providers, and markets veterinary products and services to veterinarians and farmers; revenue is generated from product sales, alliances and third‑party manufacturing.^[1]

Business Segments

• Pharmaceuticals — human therapeutic medicines and vaccines; the largest revenue source (~90% of total sales).^[2]
• Animal Health — veterinary pharmaceuticals, vaccines and health‑management solutions (~9% of total sales).^[2]
• Alliance & other revenues — profit‑share/royalty arrangements and third‑party manufacturing (~1% of total sales).^[2]

Competitive Position

• Leading oncology franchise and proprietary biologics give the company a strong IP‑based moat; flagship drugs support pricing power and scale.^[3]
• Large global commercial footprint, integrated vaccine and animal‑health businesses, and high R&D investment create durable scale advantages versus smaller peers.^[4]

Investment Considerations

• Opportunity: durable revenue base from established, large‑market products (oncology, vaccines) plus continuing pipeline and alliance revenue potential.^[2]
• Risk: material product concentration and patent/IP dependence can expose results to patent expiries, biosimilar entry and litigation risk.^[2]
• Structural risk: regulatory, pricing and reimbursement pressure in major markets can affect margins and long‑term returns; geographic/currency exposure is also relevant.^[2]
• Capital return & valuation view: large free‑cash‑flow generation supports dividends and buybacks, which are factors investors consider alongside pipeline execution and M&A discipline.^[5]