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MRK vs LEG: Dividend Comparison 2026

MRK yields 2.81% · LEG yields 2.08%● Live data

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After 10 years · $10,000 invested · DRIP enabled
🏆 MRK wins by $37.7K in total portfolio value
10 years
MRK
Merck & Co. Inc.
● Live price
2.81%
Share price
$118.10
Annual div
$3.32
5Y div CAGR
32.7%
Payout ratio
50%
After 10 yrs · $10,000 · DRIP
Portfolio value
$57.7K
Annual income
$10,113.78
Full MRK calculator →
LEG
LEG
● Live price
2.08%
Share price
$9.60
Annual div
$0.20
5Y div CAGR
-50%
Payout ratio
50%
After 10 yrs · $10,000 · DRIP
Portfolio value
$20.0K
Annual income
$0.21
Full LEG calculator →

Portfolio growth — MRK vs LEG

📍 MRK 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 PeriodMRKLEG
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%.
📅

Dividend Calendar Overlap

Combined, MRK + LEG cover 0 of 12 monthsgood coverage

Jan
Feb
Mar
Apr
May
Jun
Jul
Aug
Sep
Oct
Nov
Dec
MRK pays
LEG pays
Both pay
Neither
💰

Tax Bracket Optimizer

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

MRK
Annual income on $10K today (after 15% tax)
$238.95/yr
After 10yr DRIP, annual income (after tax)
$8,596.71/yr
LEG
Annual income on $10K today (after 15% tax)
$177.08/yr
After 10yr DRIP, annual income (after tax)
$0.18/yr
At 15% tax rate, MRK beats the other by $8,596.53/year in after-tax income after 10 years on $10,000
⚖️

Lazy Portfolio Split Optimizer

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

MRK: 50%LEG: 50%
100% LEG50/50100% MRK
Portfolio after 10yr
$38.9K
Annual income
$5,056.99/yr
Blended yield
13.01%
📊

Analyst Conviction Gap

Where Wall Street is most bullish on MRK right now

MRK
Analyst Ratings
24
Buy
12
Hold
1
Sell
Consensus: Buy
Price Target
$128.54
+8.8% upside vs current
Range: $100.00 — $150.00
Altman Z
4.0
Piotroski
6/9
LEG
Analyst Ratings
4
Buy
10
Hold
Consensus: Hold
Price Target
$11.67
+21.6% upside vs current
Range: $11.00 — $12.00
Altman Z
3.0
Piotroski
8/9
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.
🏛️

Copy Congress — What Are Politicians Buying?

Senate & House STOCK Act disclosures (last 90 days)

MRK buys
8
LEG buys
0
PoliticianChamberTickerTypeAmountDate
Josh Gottheimer🏢 House$MRK▲ Buy$1,001 - $15,0002026-02-04
Michael McCaul🏢 House$MRK▼ Sell$15,001 - $50,0002026-01-13
Gilbert Cisneros🏢 House$MRK▲ Buy$1,001 - $15,0002025-12-19
Julie Johnson🏢 House$MRK▼ Sell$1,001 - $15,0002025-12-18
Julie Johnson🏢 House$MRK▼ Sell$1,001 - $15,0002025-11-13
Ro Khanna🏢 House$MRK▼ Sell$1,001 - $15,0002025-09-29
Val Hoyle🏢 House$MRK▼ Sell$1,001 - $15,0002025-09-23
Marjorie Taylor Greene🏢 House$MRK▲ Buy$1,001 - $15,0002025-08-28
Julie Johnson🏢 House$MRK▼ Sell$1,001 - $15,0002025-08-14
Gilbert Cisneros🏢 House$MRK▲ Buy$1,001 - $15,0002025-08-05
STOCK Act mandates disclosure within 45 days of transaction. Data via FMP.Full tracker →
MetricMRKLEG
Forward yield2.81%2.08%
Annual dividend / share$3.32$0.20
Payout ratio50%50%
1-year div growth0%0%
5-year div CAGR32.7%-50%
Portfolio after 10y$57.7K$20.0K
Annual income after 10y$10,113.78$0.21
Total dividends collected$29.8K$209.00
Payment frequencyquarterlyquarterly
SectorHealthcareIndustrials
Analyst consensusBuyHold
Analyst price target$128.54$11.67

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

YearMRK PortfolioMRK Income/yrLEG PortfolioLEG Income/yrGap
1← crossover$11,213$373.04$10,804$104.17+$409.00MRK
2$12,667$512.06$11,613$52.59+$1.1KMRK
3$14,439$708.14$12,452$26.41+$2.0KMRK
4$16,640$988.16$13,337$13.24+$3.3KMRK
5$19,432$1,394.07$14,278$6.62+$5.2KMRK
6$23,057$1,992.90$15,280$3.31+$7.8KMRK
7$27,889$2,894.79$16,352$1.66+$11.5KMRK
8$34,518$4,286.29$17,497$0.83+$17.0KMRK
9$43,912$6,494.35$18,722$0.41+$25.2KMRK
10$57,714$10,113.78$20,033$0.21+$37.7KMRK

MRK vs LEG: Complete Analysis 2026

MRKHealthcare

Merck & Co., Inc. operates as a healthcare company worldwide. It operates through two segments, Pharmaceutical and Animal Health. The Pharmaceutical segment offers human health pharmaceutical products in the areas of oncology, hospital acute care, immunology, neuroscience, virology, cardiovascular, and diabetes, as well as vaccine products, such as preventive pediatric, adolescent, and adult vaccines. The Animal Health segment discovers, develops, manufactures, and markets veterinary pharmaceuticals, vaccines, and health management solutions and services, as well as digitally connected identification, traceability, and monitoring products. It serves drug wholesalers and retailers, hospitals, and government agencies; managed health care providers, such as health maintenance organizations, pharmacy benefit managers, and other institutions; and physicians and physician distributors, veterinarians, and animal producers. The company has collaborations with AstraZeneca PLC; Bayer AG; Eisai Co., Ltd.; Ridgeback Biotherapeutics; and Gilead Sciences, Inc. to jointly develop and commercialize long-acting treatments in HIV. Merck & Co., Inc. was founded in 1891 and is headquartered in Kenilworth, New Jersey.

Full MRK Calculator →

LEGIndustrials

Leggett & Platt, Incorporated designs, manufactures, and markets engineered components and products worldwide. It operates through three segments: Bedding Products; Specialized Products; and Furniture, Flooring & Textile Products. The company offers steel rods, drawn wires, foam chemicals and additives, innersprings, specialty foams, private label finished mattresses, mattress foundations, wire forms for mattress foundations, adjustable beds, industrial sewing and quilting machines, and mattress packaging and glue drying equipment, as well as machines to produce innersprings for industrial users of steel rods and wires, manufacturers of finished bedding, big box and e-commerce retailers, bedding brands and mattress retailers, department stores, and home improvement centers. It also provides mechanical and pneumatic lumbar support and massage systems for automotive seating; seat suspension systems, motors and actuators, and cables; titanium, nickel, and stainless-steel tubing, formed tubes, tube assemblies, and flexible joint components for fluid conveyance systems; and engineered hydraulic cylinders to automobile OEMs and Tier 1 suppliers, aerospace OEMs and suppliers, and mobile equipment OEMs. In addition, the company offers steel mechanisms and motion hardware for reclining chairs, sofas, sleeper sofas and lift chairs; springs and seat suspensions; components and private label finished goods for soft seating; and bases, columns, back rests, casters, and frames, as well as control devices for chairs. Further, it offers carpet cushion and hard surface flooring underlayment, structural fabrics, and geo components to manufacturers of upholstered and office furniture, flooring retailers and distributors, contractors, landscapers, road construction companies, retailers, government agencies, and mattress and furniture producers, as well as manufacturers of packaging, filtration, and draperies. The company was founded in 1883 and is based in Carthage, Missouri.

Full LEG 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.