Merck (MRK) Director Mary Ellen Coe Receives $30K Phantom Stock Award

What Happened

• Mary Ellen Coe, a director of Merck & Co., received an award of 206.455 shares (phantom stock units) on 2026-09-30. The units are reported at an effective price of $145.31 each, for a total value of $30,000. This was an award/grant (Form 4 code A), not an open-market purchase or sale.

Key Details

• Transaction date: 2026-09-30; Form 4 filed: 2026-10-01 (appears timely).
• Unit price reported: $145.31; quantity: 206.455 units; total value: $30,000.
• Shares/units owned after the transaction: not specified in the filing.
• Footnotes:
  • F1: 1-for-1 (conversion ratio).
  • F2: These are phantom stock units to be settled 100% in cash upon the reporting person's termination of service, per the Plan for Deferred Payment of Directors' Compensation.
  • F3: Holdings disclosed may include shares from dividend reinvestment.
• Filing timeliness: filed the day after the transaction date; no late filing indicated.

Context

• These are derivative/phantom units (cash-settled on termination), so they do not represent immediate share ownership or an open-market purchase. Awards to directors are common compensation and should be viewed as routine compensation rather than a direct market signal.