HomeCompareSTAR vs MRK

STAR vs MRK: Dividend Comparison 2026

STAR yields 6.55% · MRK yields 2.76%● Live data

vsPost on X →
After 10 years · $10,000 invested · DRIP enabled
🏆 MRK wins by $36.0K in total portfolio value
10 years
STAR
STAR
● Live price
6.55%
Share price
$7.63
Annual div
$0.50
5Y div CAGR
-50%
Payout ratio
50%
After 10 yrs · $10,000 · DRIP
Portfolio value
$20.8K
Annual income
$0.68
Full STAR calculator →
MRK
Merck & Co. Inc.
● Live price
2.76%
Share price
$120.31
Annual div
$3.32
5Y div CAGR
32.7%
Payout ratio
50%
After 10 yrs · $10,000 · DRIP
Portfolio value
$56.8K
Annual income
$9,798.13
Full MRK calculator →

Portfolio growth — STAR vs MRK

📍 MRK pulled ahead of the other in Year 1

Annual dividend income

🛡️

Recession Test — Did They Cut Dividends?

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

Crisis PeriodSTARMRK
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, STAR + MRK cover 0 of 12 monthsgood coverage

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

Tax Bracket Optimizer

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

STAR
Annual income on $10K today (after 15% tax)
$557.01/yr
After 10yr DRIP, annual income (after tax)
$0.58/yr
MRK
Annual income on $10K today (after 15% tax)
$234.56/yr
After 10yr DRIP, annual income (after tax)
$8,328.41/yr
At 15% tax rate, MRK beats the other by $8,327.83/year in after-tax income after 10 years on $10,000
⚖️

Lazy Portfolio Split Optimizer

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

STAR: 50%MRK: 50%
100% MRK50/50100% STAR
Portfolio after 10yr
$38.8K
Annual income
$4,899.41/yr
Blended yield
12.63%
📊

Analyst Conviction Gap

Where Wall Street is most bullish on MRK right now

STAR
Analyst Ratings
1
Hold
Consensus: Hold
Altman Z
0.6
Piotroski
3/9
MRK
Analyst Ratings
25
Buy
11
Hold
1
Sell
Consensus: Buy
Price Target
$128.54
+6.8% 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.
🏛️

Copy Congress — What Are Politicians Buying?

Senate & House STOCK Act disclosures (last 90 days)

STAR buys
0
MRK buys
0
No recent congressional trades found for STAR or MRK in the last 90 days.
STOCK Act mandates disclosure within 45 days of transaction. Data via FMP.Full tracker →
MetricSTARMRK
Forward yield6.55%2.76%
Annual dividend / share$0.50$3.32
Payout ratio50%50%
1-year div growth0%0%
5-year div CAGR-50%32.7%
Portfolio after 10y$20.8K$56.8K
Annual income after 10y$0.68$9,798.13
Total dividends collected$668.00$28.9K
Payment frequencyquarterlyquarterly
SectorStockHealthcare
Analyst consensusHoldBuy

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

YearSTAR PortfolioSTAR Income/yrMRK PortfolioMRK Income/yrGap
1← crossover$11,028$327.65$11,206$366.19$178.00MRK
2$11,968$168.84$12,650$502.35$682.00MRK
3$12,892$85.63$14,407$694.19$1.5KMRK
4$13,837$43.10$16,585$967.82$2.7KMRK
5$14,828$21.62$19,342$1,363.89$4.5KMRK
6$15,876$10.82$22,913$1,947.19$7.0KMRK
7$16,993$5.42$27,662$2,823.89$10.7KMRK
8$18,185$2.71$34,159$4,173.35$16.0KMRK
9$19,460$1.35$43,337$6,308.80$23.9KMRK
10$20,823$0.68$56,776$9,798.13$36.0KMRK

STAR vs MRK: Complete Analysis 2026

STARStock

iStar Inc. (NYSE: STAR) is focused on reinventing the ground lease sector, unlocking value for real estate owners throughout the country by providing modern, more efficient ground leases on all types of properties. As the founder, investment manager and largest shareholder of Safehold Inc. (NYSE: SAFE), the first publicly traded company to focus on modern ground leases, iStar is helping create a logical new approach to the way real estate is owned, and continues to use its historic strengths in finance and net lease to expand this unique platform. Recognized as a consistent innovator in the real estate markets, iStar specializes in identifying and scaling newly discovered opportunities and has completed more than $40 billion of transactions over the past two decades.

Full STAR Calculator →

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 →
📬

Get this STAR vs MRK comparison by email

Save your analysis + weekly dividend insights. Free forever.

More comparisons

STAR vs SCHDSTAR vs JEPISTAR vs OSTAR vs KOSTAR vs MAINSTAR vs JNJSTAR vs ABBVSTAR vs PFE

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