Merck (NYSE: MRK) finance SVP exercises options and sells 6,400 shares

Filing Impact

(Very High)

Filing Sentiment

(Negative)

Form Type

Rhea-AI Filing Summary

Merck & Co., Inc. senior vice president of finance and global controller Dalton E. Smart III reported exercising stock options and selling shares of common stock. On 02/04/2026, he exercised an option for 4,000 shares of Merck common stock at an exercise price of $62.07 per share.

On the same date, Smart reported selling 4,000 Merck common shares at $119.675 per share, followed by an additional sale of 2,400 shares at the same price. After these transactions, he directly owned 8,204.816 shares of Merck common stock. The option originally vested in three equal annual installments beginning in 2018.

Insider Trade Summary

Net Seller: 6,400 shares ($765,920)

Net Sell 4 txns

Insider Smart Dalton E. III

Role SVP Fin. - Global Controller

Sold 6,400 shs ($766K)

Type	Security	Shares	Price	Value
Exercise	Stock Option (Right to Buy)	4,000	$0.00	--
Exercise	Common Stock	4,000	$62.07	$248K
Sale	Common Stock	4,000	$119.675	$479K
Sale	Common Stock	2,400	$119.675	$287K

Holdings After Transaction: Stock Option (Right to Buy) — 8,130 shares (Direct); Common Stock — 14,604.816 shares (Direct)

Footnotes (1)

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Form 4 Insider Transactions: What Each Field Means →

02/06/2026 - 04:18 PM

SEC Form 4

FORM 4

UNITED STATES SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549

STATEMENT OF CHANGES IN BENEFICIAL OWNERSHIP

Filed pursuant to Section 16(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934
or Section 30(h) of the Investment Company Act of 1940

OMB APPROVAL

OMB Number:			3235-0287
Estimated average burden
hours per response:			0.5

Check this box if no longer subject to Section 16. Form 4 or Form 5 obligations may continue. See Instruction 1(b).

Check this box to indicate that a transaction was made pursuant to a contract, instruction or written plan for the purchase or sale of equity securities of the issuer that is intended to satisfy the affirmative defense conditions of Rule 10b5-1(c). See Instruction 10.

1. Name and Address of Reporting Person^*

Smart Dalton E. III

(Last)

(First)

(Middle)

126 EAST LINCOLN AVENUE

(Street)

RAHWAY

07065

(City)

(State)

(Zip)

2. Issuer Name and Ticker or Trading Symbol
Merck & Co., Inc. [ MRK ]

5. Relationship of Reporting Person(s) to Issuer
(Check all applicable)

	Director	10% Owner
X	Officer (give title below)	Other (specify below)
	SVP Fin. - Global Controller

3. Date of Earliest Transaction (Month/Day/Year)
02/04/2026

4. If Amendment, Date of Original Filed (Month/Day/Year)

6. Individual or Joint/Group Filing (Check Applicable Line)

X	Form filed by One Reporting Person
	Form filed by More than One Reporting Person

Table I - Non-Derivative Securities Acquired, Disposed of, or Beneficially Owned
1. Title of Security (Instr. 3)	2. Transaction Date (Month/Day/Year)	2A. Deemed Execution Date, if any (Month/Day/Year)	3. Transaction Code (Instr. 8)		4. Securities Acquired (A) or Disposed Of (D) (Instr. 3, 4 and 5)			5. Amount of Securities Beneficially Owned Following Reported Transaction(s) (Instr. 3 and 4)	6. Ownership Form: Direct (D) or Indirect (I) (Instr. 4)	7. Nature of Indirect Beneficial Ownership (Instr. 4)
1. Title of Security (Instr. 3)	2. Transaction Date (Month/Day/Year)	2A. Deemed Execution Date, if any (Month/Day/Year)	Code	V	Amount	(A) or (D)	Price		6. Ownership Form: Direct (D) or Indirect (I) (Instr. 4)	7. Nature of Indirect Beneficial Ownership (Instr. 4)
Common Stock	02/04/2026		M		4,000	A	$62.07	14,604.816	D
Common Stock	02/04/2026		S		4,000	D	$119.675	10,604.816	D
Common Stock	02/04/2026		S		2,400	D	$119.675	8,204.816	D

Table II - Derivative Securities Acquired, Disposed of, or Beneficially Owned (e.g., puts, calls, warrants, options, convertible securities)
1. Title of Derivative Security (Instr. 3)	2. Conversion or Exercise Price of Derivative Security	3. Transaction Date (Month/Day/Year)	3A. Deemed Execution Date, if any (Month/Day/Year)	4. Transaction Code (Instr. 8)		5. Number of Derivative Securities Acquired (A) or Disposed of (D) (Instr. 3, 4 and 5)		6. Date Exercisable and Expiration Date (Month/Day/Year)		7. Title and Amount of Securities Underlying Derivative Security (Instr. 3 and 4)		8. Price of Derivative Security (Instr. 5)	9. Number of derivative Securities Beneficially Owned Following Reported Transaction(s) (Instr. 4)	10. Ownership Form: Direct (D) or Indirect (I) (Instr. 4)	11. Nature of Indirect Beneficial Ownership (Instr. 4)
1. Title of Derivative Security (Instr. 3)	2. Conversion or Exercise Price of Derivative Security	3. Transaction Date (Month/Day/Year)	3A. Deemed Execution Date, if any (Month/Day/Year)	Code	V	(A)	(D)	Date Exercisable	Expiration Date	Title	Amount or Number of Shares	8. Price of Derivative Security (Instr. 5)		10. Ownership Form: Direct (D) or Indirect (I) (Instr. 4)	11. Nature of Indirect Beneficial Ownership (Instr. 4)
Stock Option (Right to Buy)	$62.07	02/04/2026		M			4,000	05/05/2018⁽¹⁾	05/04/2027	Common Stock	4,000	$0	8,130	D

Explanation of Responses:

1. The option became exercisable in equal installments on 5/5/2018, 5/5/2019 and 5/5/2020.

	/s/ Kelly E. W. Grez, attorney-in-fact for Dalton E. Smart, III	02/06/2026
	** Signature of Reporting Person	Date
Reminder: Report on a separate line for each class of securities beneficially owned directly or indirectly.
* If the form is filed by more than one reporting person, see Instruction 4 (b)(v).
** Intentional misstatements or omissions of facts constitute Federal Criminal Violations See 18 U.S.C. 1001 and 15 U.S.C. 78ff(a).
Note: File three copies of this Form, one of which must be manually signed. If space is insufficient, see Instruction 6 for procedure.
Persons who respond to the collection of information contained in this form are not required to respond unless the form displays a currently valid OMB Number.

Source: View Original Filing on SEC EDGAR

FAQ

What insider transaction did Merck (MRK) executive Dalton E. Smart III report?

Dalton E. Smart III reported exercising 4,000 Merck stock options and selling 6,400 common shares. The exercise occurred at $62.07 per share, with subsequent sales at $119.675 per share, leaving him with 8,204.816 directly owned shares.

How many Merck (MRK) shares did Dalton E. Smart III sell in this Form 4?

Dalton E. Smart III sold a total of 6,400 Merck common shares. He reported one sale of 4,000 shares and another of 2,400 shares, both at a price of $119.675 per share on 02/04/2026.

At what price did the Merck (MRK) options exercised by Dalton E. Smart III convert?

The reported stock option exercised by Dalton E. Smart III converted at an exercise price of $62.07 per share. This option covered 4,000 shares of Merck common stock and was originally granted with vesting installments beginning in 2018.

How many Merck (MRK) shares does Dalton E. Smart III own after the reported transactions?

After exercising options and selling shares, Dalton E. Smart III directly owns 8,204.816 Merck common shares. This figure reflects his beneficial ownership immediately following the 02/04/2026 sales reported on the Form 4.

What position does Dalton E. Smart III hold at Merck (MRK) in this Form 4?

Dalton E. Smart III is identified as an officer of Merck, serving as senior vice president of finance and global controller. The Form 4 indicates he is not a director or 10% beneficial owner of the company.

When did the Merck (MRK) stock option reported by Dalton E. Smart III become exercisable?

The stock option became exercisable in three equal installments. Those installments vested on 05/05/2018, 05/05/2019, and 05/05/2020, according to the footnote included with Dalton E. Smart III’s Form 4 filing.