Is EMPYF or MRK a better dividend investment in 2026?

EMPYF currently yields 293.04% with a 5% 5-year dividend growth rate. MRK yields 3.25% with 8.2% growth. The better choice depends on your goal: EMPYF offers higher current income.

What is the dividend yield difference between EMPYF and MRK?

EMPYF has a forward dividend yield of 293.04% ($2.00/share annually). MRK yields 3.25% ($3.08/share annually). The yield gap is 289.79 percentage points.

Home › Compare › EMPYF vs MRK

EMPYF vs MRK: Dividend Comparison 2026

EMPYF yields 293.04% · MRK yields 3.25%● Live data

vsPost on X →

After 10 years · $10,000 invested · DRIP enabled

🏆 EMPYF wins by $1293.58M in total portfolio value

INVESTMENT

TIME HORIZON10 years

EMPYF

● Live price

293.04%

Share price

$0.68

Annual div

$2.00

5Y div CAGR

Payout ratio

50%

After 10 yrs · $10,000 · DRIP

Portfolio value

$1293.61M

Annual income

$774,021,181.48

Full EMPYF calculator →

MRK

Merck & Co. Inc.

● Live price

3.25%

Share price

$94.80

Annual div

$3.08

5Y div CAGR

8.2%

Payout ratio

42%

After 10 yrs · $10,000 · DRIP

Portfolio value

$30.7K

Annual income

$950.29

Full MRK calculator →

Portfolio growth — EMPYF vs MRK

📍 EMPYF pulled ahead of the other in Year 1

Annual dividend income

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Recession Test — Did They Cut Dividends?

How each stock treated shareholders during the 3 biggest crises of the last 20 years

Crisis Period	EMPYF	MRK
2008–2009 GFC	— No data	— No data
2020 Q1–Q2 COVID	— No data	— No data
2022 Q4 Rate Hike	— No data	— No data

Based on dividend payment history. "Increased" = dividend grew during crisis. "Maintained" = held within 3%. "Cut" = reduced by more than 3%.

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Dividend Calendar Overlap

Combined, EMPYF + MRK cover 0 of 12 months — good coverage

Jan

—

Feb

—

Mar

—

Apr

—

May

—

Jun

—

Jul

—

Aug

—

Sep

—

Oct

—

Nov

—

Dec

—

EMPYF pays

MRK pays

Both pay

Neither

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Tax Bracket Optimizer

Which stock is actually better after tax? Adjust your rate to find out.

EMPYF

Annual income on $10K today (after 15% tax)

$24,908.42/yr

After 10yr DRIP, annual income (after tax)

$657,918,004.26/yr

MRK

Annual income on $10K today (after 15% tax)

$276.16/yr

After 10yr DRIP, annual income (after tax)

$807.75/yr

At 15% tax rate, EMPYF beats the other by $657,917,196.51/year in after-tax income after 10 years on $10,000

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Lazy Portfolio Split Optimizer

What's the optimal mix of EMPYF + MRK for your $10,000?

EMPYF: 50%MRK: 50%

100% MRK50/50100% EMPYF

Portfolio after 10yr

$646.82M

Annual income

$387,011,065.89/yr

Blended yield

59.83%

📊

Analyst Conviction Gap

Where Wall Street is most bullish on MRK right now

EMPYF

No analyst data

Altman Z

8.7

Piotroski

7/9

MRK

Analyst Ratings

Buy

Hold

Sell

Consensus: Buy

Price Target

$128.54

+35.6% upside vs current

Range: $100.00 — $150.00

Altman Z

4.0

Piotroski

6/9

Analyst ratings via FMP. Altman Z-Score: >3.0 safe, 1.81–3.0 grey zone, <1.81 distress. Piotroski: 7–9 strong, 0–3 weak.

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Copy Congress — What Are Politicians Buying?

Senate & House STOCK Act disclosures (last 90 days)

EMPYF buys

MRK buys

No recent congressional trades found for EMPYF or MRK in the last 90 days.

STOCK Act mandates disclosure within 45 days of transaction. Data via FMP.Full tracker →

MetricEMPYFMRK

Forward yield	293.04% ✓	3.25%
Annual dividend / share	$2.00	$3.08 ✓
Payout ratio	50%	42% ✓
1-year div growth	0%	5.5% ✓
5-year div CAGR	0%	8.2% ✓
Portfolio after 10y	$1293.61M ✓	$30.7K
Annual income after 10y	$774,021,181.48 ✓	$950.29
Total dividends collected	$1241.10M ✓	$6.1K
Payment frequency	quarterly	quarterly
Sector	Stock	Healthcare

Year-by-year: EMPYF vs MRK ($10,000, DRIP)

Year	EMPYF Portfolio	EMPYF Income/yr	MRK Portfolio	MRK Income/yr	Gap
1← crossover	$40,004	$29,304.03	$11,192	$351.54	+$28.8K → EMPYF
2	$152,363	$109,558.81	$12,524	$392.70	+$139.8K → EMPYF
3	$553,006	$389,977.58	$14,015	$438.65	+$539.0K → EMPYF
4	$1,914,552	$1,322,835.81	$15,682	$489.96	+$1.90M → EMPYF
5	$6,328,726	$4,280,154.80	$17,547	$547.23	+$6.31M → EMPYF
6	$19,994,576	$13,222,839.70	$19,632	$611.16	+$19.97M → EMPYF
7	$60,436,630	$39,042,433.57	$21,963	$682.53	+$60.41M → EMPYF
8	$174,958,464	$110,291,269.98	$24,571	$762.18	+$174.93M → EMPYF
9	$485,600,924	$298,395,367.51	$27,486	$851.08	+$485.57M → EMPYF
10	$1,293,614,171	$774,021,181.48	$30,745	$950.29	+$1293.58M → EMPYF

EMPYF vs MRK: Complete Analysis 2026

EMPYF — Stock

Empress Royalty Corp. acquires royalty and streaming interests in precious metal mines and mining projects. The company has a portfolio of 17 precious metals royalties in Canada. It has net smelter return royalty interests in the Pinos Royalty and McLeroy-Pinos Royalty in the Pinos gold-silver project in Mexico. The company was incorporated in 2020 and is headquartered in White Rock, Canada.

Full EMPYF Calculator →

MRK — Healthcare

Merck is a Dividend Aristocrat with 14+ consecutive years of increases. Keytruda (pembrolizumab) is the world's best-selling cancer drug and drives exceptional cash generation. The company's oncology and vaccines pipeline provides long-term growth visibility beyond the Keytruda patent cliff in the 2030s.

Full MRK Calculator →

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⚠️ Educational purposes only. Not financial advice. Congressional trades sourced from SEC STOCK Act filings via FMP. Past performance does not guarantee future results.