Williams David Michael 4

What Happened David M. Williams, EVP & Chief Information & Digital Officer at Merck (MRK), received a distribution of 6,112 shares of common stock on January 26, 2026. The shares were valued at $107.40 each for a total value of about $656,429. This was a settlement of performance share units (PSUs) granted on March 31, 2023, paid out at 94% of target and distributed as net after-tax shares.

Key Details

• Transaction date: 2026-01-26; reported on Form 4 filed 2026-01-28 (filed within the two-business-day deadline).
• Transaction type: Award/Acquisition (A) — distribution of PSUs.
• Shares awarded: 6,112 at $107.40 per share; total ≈ $656,429.
• Footnote F1: Distribution of net after-tax shares on satisfaction of performance criteria for PSUs granted 3/31/2023; payout at 94% of target and includes dividends accrued over the three-year performance period ending 12/31/2025.
• Footnote F2: Holdings include shares acquired via dividend reinvestment transactions.
• Holdings after transaction: not specified in the provided excerpt of the filing.

Context This was a compensation-related award (PSU settlement), not an open-market buy or sale. Such distributions reflect the company’s long-term incentive plan payouts based on prior performance metrics and are routine for executives — they do not necessarily signal the insider’s short-term view of the stock.