Merck (MRK) reported fourth quarter and full year earnings Tuesday, in line with Wall Street estimates. The bad news: Its stock was down more than 8% in pre-market trading, largely because of weaker than expected 2025 guidance.
Merck reported $64.2 billion in sales for 2024, a 7% increase compared with 2023. That is near Wall Street consensus of $64 billion. Earnings per share came in at $7.65, just above Wall Street’s $7.56 estimate.
The company reported $15.6 billion in global sales for the fourth quarter, a 7% increase from the same quarter in 2023—about 1% more than Wall Street’s estimates of $15.4 billion.
Merck expects 2025 results to be only slightly higher than 2024, announcing between $64.1 and $65.6 billion in expected revenue this year. Apparently that didn’t cheer up investors.
Analysts have had mixed feelings about Merck in the recent past, with concerns the company, like other big pharmaceuticals, isn’t doing enough to ensure that its pipeline of products remains robust in the face of competition and expiring patents.
Jefferies analysts said in a recent note to clients that Merck is “in the penalty box” and there has been investor frustration about the lack of clarity on the company’s long term approach. Comparisons to Pfizer (PFE), which also reported Tuesday, put both stocks in the category of “cheap” to buy for now, but with positive long term potential.
Merck’s two big revenue products are its HPV vaccine, Gardasil, and cancer drug Keytruda. The latter is facing patent expiry in 2028. Gardasil, meanwhile, has had weaker sales in China — an important market for Merck— which negatively impacted sales in 2024. It is unclear how much Trump’s China tariffs will disrupt the market for Merck, which also announced a pause of China shipments until “at least mid-year” due to the ongoing softness in demand. But Gardasil was recently approved for men, and the company expects sales to pick up starting next year.
Keytruda brought in $29.5 billion in sales in 2024, an 18% increase compared to 2023, while Gardasil brought in $8.6 billion, a 2% decline compared to 2023.
Anjalee Khemlani is the senior health reporter at Yahoo Finance, covering all things pharma, insurance, care services, digital health, PBMs, and health policy and politics. That includes GLP-1s, of course. Follow Anjalee on social media platforms X, LinkedIn, and Bluesky @AnjKhem.
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