Merck & Co.

Money Moves

Expanding infectious disease portfolio through $9.2B Cidara acquisition

Sanofi dropped $2.2 billion on December 24, 2025 to acquire Dynavax, a California biotech with a two-dose hepatitis B vaccine and a shingles vaccine in development. The 39% premium signals desperation in a market projected to hit $37.2 billion by 2033, driven by aging populations; the deal is expected to close in Q1 2026 pending Hart-Scott-Rodino antitrust clearance.[1] By 2050, 2.1 billion people will be over 60, triple the population over 80.

Updated 2 hours ago

New Capabilities

Advancing enlicitide decanoate toward FDA filing after positive Phase 3 results

For two decades, lowering LDL cholesterol meant statins—daily pills that work for most but leave roughly one in five patients with muscle pain or liver enzyme changes severe enough to quit. On May 1, researchers at the University of Barcelona and Oregon Health & Science University published results on a short, engineered DNA molecule that silences the gene controlling how the liver clears LDL, cutting cholesterol by nearly 50 percent in mice after a single injection.

Updated May 7

Money Moves

Acquirer — executing multiyear pipeline-rebuilding strategy

Keytruda, the world's best-selling drug, generated $31.7 billion for Merck in 2025 — roughly 40% of the company's total revenue. Its key U.S. patents expire in 2028, and when they do, cheaper copies will enter the market and that revenue will begin to evaporate. Merck has now spent over $25 billion on three acquisitions in nine months to build the portfolio that will need to replace it.

Updated Mar 25

New Capabilities

Co-developer and commercialization partner

Cancer vaccines have promised to train the immune system against tumors for decades. None has delivered a durable, replicable benefit—until now. On January 20, 2026, Moderna and Merck reported that their personalized mRNA vaccine, combined with the immunotherapy Keytruda, cut the risk of melanoma recurrence or death by 49% at five years in a Phase 2b trial of 157 patients. The sustained result—identical to the three-year mark—suggests the vaccine permanently reprograms immune surveillance rather than offering temporary protection.

Updated Jan 25