Summary

  • Merck & Co is a research-intensive biopharmaceutical company
  • The company delivers health solutions through biologic therapies, vaccines and animal health products.
  • The company recently acquire Imago BioSciences

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Merck & Co (NYSE: MRK, LSE:0QAH) is a research-intensive biopharmaceutical company. Merck & Co is a global health care company that delivers health solutions through its prescription medicines, including biologic therapies, vaccines and animal health products.

Recent Developments

Merck to buy Prometheus Biosciences1

April 16, 2023; Merck known as MSD outside the United States and Canada, and Prometheus Biosciences, Inc. (“Prometheus”) (Nasdaq: RXDX) today announced that the companies have entered into a definitive agreement under which Merck, through a subsidiary, has agreed to acquire Prometheus for $200.00 per share in cash for a total equity value of approximately $10.8 billion.

Prometheus is a clinical-stage biotechnology company pioneering a precision medicine approach for the discovery, development, and commercialization of novel therapeutic and companion diagnostic products for the treatment of immune-mediated diseases. The company’s lead candidate, PRA023, is a humanized monoclonal antibody (mAb) directed to tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-like ligand 1A (TL1A), a target associated with both intestinal inflammation and fibrosis.

US FDA Approves Intramuscular Administration for Merck’s MMRV Family of Vaccines2

March 6, 2023; Merckx known as MSD outside of the United States and Canada, announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved the addition of the intramuscular (IM) route of administration to the United States Product Insert (USPI) for Merck’s MMRV family of vaccines: M-M-R®II, VARIVAX®, and ProQuad®.

With these approvals, healthcare professionals now have the option to choose to administer all routinely recommended injectable pediatric vaccinations included in the CDC immunization schedule, via the same IM route. In the U.S., the only measles, mumps, rubella, and varicella vaccines that can be administered IM are M-M-R®II, VARIVAX®, and ProQuad®. Additionally, the MMRV family of vaccines has already been licensed for IM administration in the European Union.

Merck Completes Tender Offer to Acquire Imago BioSciences, Inc.3

January 11, 2023; - Merck announced the successful completion of the cash tender offer, through a subsidiary, for all of the outstanding shares of common stock of Imago BioSciences, Inc. (Nasdaq: IMGO), at a purchase price of $36.00 per share in cash, without interest and subject to deduction for any required tax withholding. As of the tender offer expiration at one minute after 11:59 p.m., Eastern Time, on January 10, 2023, 31,307,028 shares of common stock of Imago were validly tendered and not withdrawn from the tender offer, representing approximately 89.2% of the total number of Imago’s outstanding shares on a fully diluted basis. All such shares have been accepted for payment in accordance with the terms of the tender offer, and Merck expects to promptly pay for such shares.

Merck intends to complete today the acquisition of Imago through a merger of Merck’s wholly owned subsidiary with and into Imago, with Imago being the surviving corporation, in which all shares not tendered into the offer will be cancelled and converted into the right to receive cash equal to the $36.00 offer price per share, without interest and subject to deduction for any required tax withholding. After the completion of the merger, Imago will become a wholly owned subsidiary of Merck and the common stock of Imago will no longer be listed or traded on the Nasdaq Global Market.

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Financial Highlights

Full-Year 2022 Results

Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) earnings per share (EPS) assuming dilution was $5.71 for the full year of 2022. Non-GAAP EPS was $7.48 for the full year of 2022.4

Worldwide sales were $59.3 billion in 2022, an increase of 22% compared with 2021, or 26% excluding the unfavorable effect of foreign exchange. The sales increase was primarily due to growth in virology (driven by the benefit of Lagevrio sales), oncology, vaccines and hospital acute care.

Cost of sales was $17.4 billion in 2022 and $13.6 billion in 2021. Cost of sales includes $3.0 billion and $502 million in 2022 and 2021, respectively, related to the collaboration with Ridgeback for Lagevrio.

Gross margin was 70.6% in 2022 compared with 72.0% in 2021. Research and development (R&D) expenses were $13.5 billion in 2022, an increase of 11% compared with 2021. The effective income tax rates from continuing operations were 11.7% in 2022 and 11.0% in 2021.

Capital expenditures were $4.4 billion in 2022, $4.4 billion in 2021 and $4.4 billion in 2020. Expenditures in the U.S. were $2.7 billion in 2022, $2.8 billion in 2021 and $2.6 billion in 2020. The Company plans to invest approximately $20 billion in capital projects from 2021-2025, approximately half of which relates to investments in the U.S., including expanding manufacturing capacity for oncology, vaccine and animal health products.

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Company Overview

Merck & Co., Inc. is a global health care company that delivers health solutions through its prescription medicines, including biologic therapies, vaccines and animal health products. The Company’s operations are managed on a product basis and include two operating segments, Pharmaceutical and Animal Health.

The Pharmaceutical segment includes human health pharmaceutical and vaccine products. Human health pharmaceutical products consist of therapeutic and preventive agents, generally sold by prescription, for the treatment of human disorders. The Company sells these human health pharmaceutical products primarily to drug wholesalers and retailers, hospitals, government agencies and managed health care providers such as health maintenance organizations, pharmacy benefit managers and other institutions. Human health vaccine products consist of preventive pediatric, adolescent and adult vaccines. The Company sells these human health vaccines primarily to physicians, wholesalers, physician distributors and government entities.

The Animal Health segment discovers, develops, manufactures and markets a wide range of veterinary pharmaceutical and vaccine products, as well as health management solutions and services, for the prevention, treatment and control of disease in all major livestock and companion animal species. The Company also offers an extensive suite of digitally connected identification, traceability and monitoring products. The Company sells its products to veterinarians, distributors, animal producers, farmers and pet owners.

On June 2, 2021, Merck completed the spin-off (the Spin-Off) of products from its women’s health, biosimilars and established brands businesses into a new, independent, publicly traded company named Organon & Co. (Organon) through a distribution of Organon’s publicly traded stock to Company shareholders. The established brands included in the transaction consisted of dermatology, non-opioid pain management, respiratory, select cardiovascular products, as well as the rest of Merck’s diversified brands franchise. Merck’s existing research pipeline programs continue to be owned and developed within Merck as planned.

Worldwide locations

Merck & Co., Inc., Rahway, NJ, USA is known as MSD outside of the United States and Canada.5

EuropeAsia PacificMiddle East & AfricaThe Americas
AustriaAustraliaAlgeriaArgentina
BelarusAzerbaijanBahrainBrazil
BelgiumChinaEgyptChile
BulgariaHong KongJordanColombia
CroatiaIndiaKuwaitCosta Rica
CyprusIndonesiaLebanonEcuador
Czech RepublicJapanMEAGuatemala
DenmarkKazakhstanOmanMexico
EstoniaMalaysiaQatarPanama
FinlandNew ZealandSaudi ArabiaPeru
FrancePhilippinesSouth AfricaVenezuela
GermanySingaporeTurkey 
GreeceSouth KoreaUnited Arab Emirates 
HungaryTaiwan  
IcelandThailand  
IrelandVietnam  
Israel   
Italy   
Latvia   
Lithuania   
Netherlands   
Norway   
Poland   
Portugal   
Romania   
Russia   
Serbia   
Slovakia   
Slovenia   
Spain   
Sweden   
Switzerland   
UK   
Ukraine   

R&D facilities

The company's Research facilities6

  • Boston, MA - Focuses on discovery research in immunology, oncology, diabetes and neuroscience.
  • Cambridge, MA - Focuses on the earliest stages of discovery research — exploring the most promising areas of emerging science and technology.
  • Kenilworth, NJ – This is company’s main biologics research and development hub. Here works on the discovery continuum, including preclinical development.
  • London, UK - Focusing on the most challenging diseases facing aging populations.
  • Rahway, NJ - This is a research-focused campus that includes core chemistry and preclinical development capabilities.
  • South San Francisco, CA - Focused on expanding its innovative research in biologics — spanning exploratory research through early clinical development.
  • Upper Gwynedd, PA - Site is headquarters for U.S. Human Health Division
  • West Point, PA - Supports core discovery, preclinical and clinical functional areas — researching, manufacturing and testing pharmaceuticals and vaccines.

Manufacturing & Supply locations in the U.S.7

  • Ames, IA
  • De Soto, KS
  • Durham, NC
  • Elkhorn, NE
  • Elkton, VA
  • Millsboro, DE
  • Riverside, PA
  • West Point, PA
  • Wilson, NC
  • Worthington, MN

Company History

Merck & Co. was founded in the U.S. on January 1, 1891 by George Merck, to distribute fine chemicals throughout New York City and the neighboring areas.8

YearMilestone
1891

Merck & Co. founded

Merck & Co. was founded in the U.S. on January 1, 1891. George Merck, age 23, established the company to distribute fine chemicals throughout New York City and the neighboring areas.

1899

The first Merck Manual published

The first Merck Manual was published in 1899. Treatments in the first manual included bloodletting for acute bronchitis, arsenic for impotence and almond bread for diabetes. The Merck Manual went on to become one of the most widely used medical references.

1933

Merck Research Laboratory created

The Merck Research Laboratory was founded in Rahway, New Jersey. The laboratory represented Merck's initial foray into pharmacological research and included three separate divisions: Pure Research, the Merck Institute for Therapeutic Research and Applied Research.

1948

Merck entered the animal health market with sulfaquinoxaline

After years of extensive testing, Merck brought S.Q. (sulfaquinoxaline) to market. The product, used to prevent coccidiosis, a parasitic poultry disease, formally ushered Merck into the field of animal health.

1952Merck researchers developed the first vaccine for polio, which was one of the most feared diseases of the time.
1978Merck launched Crixivan, the first protease inhibitor for HIV/AIDS, which revolutionized the treatment of the disease.
1986

Hepatitis B vaccine was approved by the FDA

Merck's recombinant hepatitis B vaccine, RECOMBIVAX HB [hepatitis b vaccine (recombinant)], was approved by the FDA, the first recombinant vaccine for human use. In 1989, Merck transferred its RECOMBIVAX HB vaccine technology to the Chinese government, where hepatitis B was the largest public health challenge in the country with an estimated 100 million carriers of the disease.

1998

SINGULAIR approved by FDA

SINGULAIR (montelukast sodium) was approved by the FDA for the prevention and treatment of asthma. It was the product of nearly twenty years of research conducted at its Merck Frosst discovery hub in Kirkland, Canada, into a new class of asthma medicines called leukotriene blockers.

2004Merck introduced Gardasil, a vaccine to prevent human papillomavirus (HPV), which can cause cervical cancer.
2009

The company acquired Schering-Plough

Merck and Schering-Plough completed a merger and began combined operations. The purchase made the company the second largest pharmaceutical company in United States by revenue.

2019

ERVEBO® approved by the FDA

Merck received FDA approval for ERVEBO® (Ebola Zaire Vaccine, Live) for the prevention of disease caused by Zaire ebolavirus in individuals 18 years of age and older.

2020Merck & Co., Inc. announced a collaboration with Ridgeback Biotherapeutics to develop a potential treatment for COVID-19.

References

  1. ^ https://www.merck.com/news/merck-strengthens-immunology-pipeline-with-acquisition-of-prometheus-biosciences-inc/
  2. ^ https://www.merck.com/news/us-fda-approves-intramuscular-administration-for-mercks-mmrv-family-of-vaccines-m-m-rii-measles-mumps-and-rubella-virus-vaccine-live-varivax-varicella-virus-vaccine-live-and-proquad/
  3. ^ https://www.merck.com/news/merck-completes-tender-offer-to-acquire-imago-biosciences-inc/
  4. ^ https://d18rn0p25nwr6d.cloudfront.net/CIK-0000064978/b390be48-92bf-4595-96da-ac5cd7c3d92e.pdf
  5. ^ https://www.msd.com/contact-us/worldwide-locations/
  6. ^ https://www.merck.com/research/rd-locations/
  7. ^ https://jobs.merck.com/us/en/manufacturing
  8. ^ https://www.merck.com/company-overview/history/
Created by Asif Farooqui on 2023/03/25 14:29
     
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