Is MAAY or MRK a better dividend investment in 2026?

MAAY currently yields 104.62% with a 5% 5-year dividend growth rate. MRK yields 3.25% with 8.2% growth. The better choice depends on your goal: MAAY offers higher current income.

What is the dividend yield difference between MAAY and MRK?

MAAY has a forward dividend yield of 104.62% ($8.07/share annually). MRK yields 3.25% ($3.08/share annually). The yield gap is 101.37 percentage points.

Home › Compare › MAAY vs MRK

MAAY vs MRK: Dividend Comparison 2026

MAAY yields 104.62% · MRK yields 3.25%● Live data

vsPost on X →

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

🏆 MAAY wins by $4.67M in total portfolio value

INVESTMENT

TIME HORIZON10 years

MAAY

● Live price

104.62%

Share price

$7.72

Annual div

$8.07

5Y div CAGR

Payout ratio

50%

After 10 yrs · $10,000 · DRIP

Portfolio value

$4.70M

Annual income

$1,631,073.24

Full MAAY 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 — MAAY vs MRK

📍 MAAY 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	MAAY	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, MAAY + MRK cover 0 of 12 months — good coverage

Jan

—

Feb

—

Mar

—

Apr

—

May

—

Jun

—

Jul

—

Aug

—

Sep

—

Oct

—

Nov

—

Dec

—

MAAY pays

MRK pays

Both pay

Neither

💰

Tax Bracket Optimizer

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

MAAY

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

$8,892.96/yr

After 10yr DRIP, annual income (after tax)

$1,386,412.25/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, MAAY beats the other by $1,385,604.51/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 MAAY + MRK for your $10,000?

MAAY: 50%MRK: 50%

100% MRK50/50100% MAAY

Portfolio after 10yr

$2.36M

Annual income

$816,011.77/yr

Blended yield

34.51%

📊

Analyst Conviction Gap

Where Wall Street is most bullish on MRK right now

MAAY

No analyst data

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)

MAAY buys

MRK buys

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

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

MetricMAAYMRK

Forward yield	104.62% ✓	3.25%
Annual dividend / share	$8.07 ✓	$3.08
Payout ratio	50%	42% ✓
1-year div growth	0%	5.5% ✓
5-year div CAGR	0%	8.2% ✓
Portfolio after 10y	$4.70M	$30.7K ✓
Annual income after 10y	$1,631,073.24 ✓	$950.29
Total dividends collected	$4.21M	$6.1K ✓
Payment frequency	quarterly	quarterly
Sector	Stock	Healthcare

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

Year	MAAY Portfolio	MAAY Income/yr	MRK Portfolio	MRK Income/yr	Gap
1← crossover	$21,162	$10,462.31	$11,192	$351.54	+$10.0K → MAAY
2	$43,336	$20,692.20	$12,524	$392.70	+$30.8K → MAAY
3	$85,970	$39,601.12	$14,015	$438.65	+$72.0K → MAAY
4	$165,410	$73,421.89	$15,682	$489.96	+$149.7K → MAAY
5	$309,014	$132,024.64	$17,547	$547.23	+$291.5K → MAAY
6	$561,153	$230,508.15	$19,632	$611.16	+$541.5K → MAAY
7	$991,640	$391,206.38	$21,963	$682.53	+$969.7K → MAAY
8	$1,707,148	$646,092.96	$24,571	$762.18	+$1.68M → MAAY
9	$2,866,157	$1,039,509.17	$27,486	$851.08	+$2.84M → MAAY
10	$4,697,861	$1,631,073.24	$30,745	$950.29	+$4.67M → MAAY

MAAY vs MRK: Complete Analysis 2026

MAAY — Stock

The Fund’s primary investment objective is to achieve 2 times (200%) the income generated from selling options on MARA Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ MARA) (the “Underlying Stock”) by selling options on leveraged exchange-traded funds designed to deliver 2 times (200%) the daily performance of the Underlying Stock (the “Underlying Leveraged ETF”). The Fund’s secondary investment objective is to gain exposure to the performance of the Underlying Leveraged ETF, subject to a cap on potential investment gains. A downside protection may be implemented which could affect the net income level.

Full MAAY 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.