Stock Analysis on Net

Merck & Co. Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Cash Flow Statement 
Quarterly Data

The cash flow statement provides information about a company cash receipts and cash payments during an accounting period, showing how these cash flows link the ending cash balance to the beginning balance shown on the company balance sheet.

The cash flow statement consists of three parts: cash flows provided by (used in) operating activities, cash flows provided by (used in) investing activities, and cash flows provided by (used in) financing activities.

Merck & Co. Inc., consolidated cash flow statement (quarterly data)

US$ in millions

Microsoft Excel
3 months ended: Jun 30, 2025 Mar 31, 2025 Dec 31, 2024 Sep 30, 2024 Jun 30, 2024 Mar 31, 2024 Dec 31, 2023 Sep 30, 2023 Jun 30, 2023 Mar 31, 2023 Dec 31, 2022 Sep 30, 2022 Jun 30, 2022 Mar 31, 2022 Dec 31, 2021 Sep 30, 2021 Jun 30, 2021 Mar 31, 2021 Dec 31, 2020 Sep 30, 2020 Jun 30, 2020 Mar 31, 2020
Net income (loss) from continuing operations 4,429 5,085 3,744 3,161 5,461 4,767 (1,226) 4,750 (5,972) 2,825 3,018 3,252 3,949 4,307 3,824 4,571 1,214 2,749 (2,091) 2,944 3,010 3,219
Amortization 601 597 675 633 614 473 462 562 477 543 462 460 464 699 405 360 357 514
Depreciation 518 502 522 553 518 511 502 452 426 448 430 499 474 421 430 399 371 378
Depreciation and amortization (legacy) 904 852 1,048 821
Intangible asset impairment charges 39 779 13 839 887 23 302 1,683 15 20
(Income) loss from investments in equity securities, net (99) (90) 155 31 (57) (143) (100) 34 176 (450) 58 370 283 708 (405) (681) (280) (574)
Charge for research and development asset acquisition 700 2,100 656 10,217 1,192 1,556 2,660
Deferred income taxes (448) (186) (616) (401) (181) (51) (931) (336) (355) (277) (307) (661) (262) (338) 159 (1) 11 18 (715) (75) 40 82
Share-based compensation 216 195 187 195 203 176 167 164 169 145 145 139 137 120 119 117 132 111 121 125 121 108
Other 335 109 (101) 437 91 83 449 (99) 202 (197) 132 393 633 143 306 171 92 236 396 (243) (345) 143
Net changes in assets and liabilities (2,259) (3,712) (1,855) 2,582 (1,012) (3,382) 144 2,177 (1,636) (2,890) (347) 263 (1,399) (1,299) (45) (139) (1,463) (2,192) 1,048 (1,445) (527) (3,666)
Adjustments to reconcile net income (loss) from continuing operations to net cash provided by operating activities (1,136) (2,585) (294) 6,130 176 (1,677) 1,472 2,967 9,676 (1,486) 1,412 2,350 353 454 1,271 226 776 (1,509) 6,097 (771) 357 (2,512)
Net cash provided by operating activities 3,293 2,500 3,450 9,291 5,637 3,090 246 7,717 3,704 1,339 4,430 5,602 4,302 4,761 5,095 4,797 1,990 1,240 4,006 2,173 3,367 707
Capital expenditures (764) (1,328) (937) (783) (791) (861) (989) (902) (965) (1,007) (1,149) (1,126) (1,129) (984) (1,208) (1,172) (986) (1,082) (1,514) (1,516) (668) (986)
Purchase of Seagen Inc. common stock (1,000)
Purchases of securities and other investments (612) (595) (455) (49) (15) (251) (117) (25) (562) (494) (5) (333) (372) (1) (17) (1) (28) (49)
Proceeds from sale of Seagen Inc. common stock 1,145
Proceeds from sales of securities and other investments 601 456 7 50 60 260 169 704 285 500 12 335 373 1 529 111 386 918 2 76 1,816
Acquisition of Eyebiotech Limited, net of cash acquired (1,344)
Acquisition of Elanco Animal Health Incorporated aqua business (2) (1,301)
Acquisition of Harpoon Therapeutics, Inc., net of cash acquired (746)
Acquisition of MK-1045 (formerly CN201) from Curon Pharmaceutical (700)
Acquisition of Prometheus Biosciences, Inc., net of cash acquired (10,705)
Acquisition of Imago BioSciences, Inc., net of cash acquired (1,327)
Acquisition of Acceleron Pharma Inc., net of cash acquired (11,174)
Acquisition of Pandion Therapeutics, Inc., net of cash acquired (1,554)
Acquisition of VelosBio Inc., net of cash acquired (2,696)
Acquisition of ArQule, Inc., net of cash acquired (2,545)
Other 5 (20) (57) 233 (289) (14) (21) (19) (33) 37 (117) (166) 12 182 (196) (85) 11 (469) (640) (262) 136
Net cash used in investing activities (770) (1,487) (1,444) (3,845) (1,069) (1,376) 53 (334) (11,443) (2,359) (1,748) (962) (1,077) (1,173) (12,049) (1,061) (2,625) (686) (4,778) (2,155) (882) (1,628)
Net change in short-term borrowings 48 (1,937) 1,937 (3) (4,771) 788 2,860 (2,278) (1,616) 3,583
Proceeds from issuance of debt (1) 3,600 (7) 5,946 7,936 (26) 4,445
Payments on debt (2,500) (539) (751) (3) (1) (1,750) (1) (1) (1,000) (1,250) (1,166) (1,153) (3) (2) (1) (1,951)
Dividends paid to stockholders (2,077) (2,050) (1,951) (1,953) (1,986) (1,950) (1,852) (1,855) (1,885) (1,853) (1,750) (1,747) (1,770) (1,745) (1,643) (1,649) (1,673) (1,645) (1,542) (1,545) (1,577) (1,551)
Distribution from Organon & Co. 9,000
Purchases of treasury stock (1,345) (1,164) (489) (444) (251) (122) (393) (466) (338) (149) (18) (583) (239) (1,281)
Proceeds from exercise of stock options 12 19 12 5 73 87 6 7 82 30 265 10 97 12 134 17 42 9 21 28 14 26
Other (194) (60) (42) (32) (220) (78) (3) (10) (234) (81) (68) 35 (104) (103) (33) (59) (97) (97) 36 (28) (128) (316)
Net cash provided by (used in) financing activities (3,556) (5,755) (3,009) (2,425) 1,216 (2,814) (2,245) (4,269) 3,758 (2,054) (1,554) (2,702) (1,777) (3,086) 5,207 (2,274) 2,262 (2,098) 1,372 (3,851) 1,137 (1,490)
Net cash provided by operating activities (64) 500 551
Net cash used in investing activities (82) (52)
Net cash used in financing activities (504)
Net cash flows provided by discontinued operations (64) (86) 499
Effect of exchange rate changes on cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash 374 156 (367) 294 (82) (138) 186 (157) (93) 87 366 (412) (309) (55) (68) (46) 78 (97) 164 87 65 (63)
Net increase (decrease) in cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash (659) (4,586) (1,370) 3,315 5,702 (1,238) (1,760) 2,957 (4,074) (2,987) 1,494 1,526 1,139 447 (1,879) 1,416 1,619 (1,142) 764 (3,746) 3,687 (2,474)

Based on: 10-Q (reporting date: 2025-06-30), 10-Q (reporting date: 2025-03-31), 10-K (reporting date: 2024-12-31), 10-Q (reporting date: 2024-09-30), 10-Q (reporting date: 2024-06-30), 10-Q (reporting date: 2024-03-31), 10-K (reporting date: 2023-12-31), 10-Q (reporting date: 2023-09-30), 10-Q (reporting date: 2023-06-30), 10-Q (reporting date: 2023-03-31), 10-K (reporting date: 2022-12-31), 10-Q (reporting date: 2022-09-30), 10-Q (reporting date: 2022-06-30), 10-Q (reporting date: 2022-03-31), 10-K (reporting date: 2021-12-31), 10-Q (reporting date: 2021-09-30), 10-Q (reporting date: 2021-06-30), 10-Q (reporting date: 2021-03-31), 10-K (reporting date: 2020-12-31), 10-Q (reporting date: 2020-09-30), 10-Q (reporting date: 2020-06-30), 10-Q (reporting date: 2020-03-31).


The analysis of the quarterly financial data over the periods from March 2020 through June 2025 reveals several noteworthy trends across income, cash flows, investments, and financing activities.

Net Income (Loss) from Continuing Operations
Net income shows moderate fluctuations with occasional significant volatility. Between March 2020 and December 2020, net income declined sharply, turning negative in December 2020. Subsequently, income recovered and peaked notably in September 2021. There were then intermittent periods of volatility, including a pronounced loss in June 2023 and partial recovery afterwards. The overall trend reflects cyclical impacts possibly influenced by external events and internal operational changes.
Amortization and Depreciation
Depreciation consistently ranged between approximately $370 million to $550 million, showing a gradual upward trend over time, indicating increasing capital asset base or aging assets. Amortization figures fluctuated but generally showed a moderate increase toward the later periods. Legacy depreciation and amortization figures ceased appearing after 2020, likely due to changes in accounting classification.
Intangible Asset Impairment Charges
Impairment charges were sporadic with notable spikes in December 2020 and throughout 2022, including a significant charge of $887 million in September 2022 and $839 million in December 2022. These indicate periods of reassessment and potential write-downs of intangible assets.
Investments in Equity Securities
Reported gains and losses from equity securities exhibited irregular patterns. There were significant negative impacts in early 2021 followed by positive gains in late 2021 and 2022, and again negative swings in mid-2023. This suggests exposure to market volatility or realization of investment gains/losses in varying quarters.
Research and Development (R&D) Asset Acquisition Charges
These charges show sporadic large amounts, notably exceeding $10 billion in June 2023, reflecting major acquisitions or investments in R&D-related assets, indicating a strategy focused on expanding the innovation pipeline.
Deferred Income Taxes
Deferred tax amounts generally remained negative or close to zero, indicating potential utilization of deferred tax assets or liabilities with variability reflecting changes in tax estimates and timing differences over time.
Share-Based Compensation
Share-based compensation expenses experienced a gradual increase from about $108 million in early 2020 to over $210 million by 2025, reflecting ongoing employee incentive programs expanding over the observed timeline.
Net Changes in Assets and Liabilities
These changes fluctuated widely with some quarters showing significant cash inflows and others showing outflows, especially during 2023 and 2024, suggesting working capital management challenges or timing differences in operating cycles.
Operating Cash Flows
Net cash provided by operating activities generally trended positively, with peaks in late 2021 and late 2024, indicating healthy operational performance. However, there were intermittent quarters with sharply reduced or negative operating cash flow, illustrating operational pressures or timing impacts on collections and payments.
Capital Expenditures
Capital expenditures were consistently negative, showing sustained investment in fixed assets. Although fluctuating, spending ranged mostly between $700 million to $1.5 billion quarterly, reflecting ongoing asset maintenance and growth investments.
Investment Activity
Net cash used in investing activities demonstrates a pattern of significant cash outflows primarily driven by multiple large acquisitions between 2021 and 2025, including payments ranging from approximately $700 million to over $10 billion for various acquisitions. Periodic proceeds from sales of securities partially offset investing outflows. The acquisition strategy appears aggressive and focused on expansion through external growth.
Financing Activities
Financing cash flows were variable, with significant proceeds from debt issuance at several points, balanced by repayments and substantial dividend payments consistently increasing over time, reaching above $2 billion quarterly by 2025. Treasury stock repurchases occurred intermittently, suggesting active capital return to shareholders. The financing pattern indicates careful management of capital structure with regular shareholder returns.
Effect of Exchange Rate Changes
Foreign exchange impacts on cash fluctuated markedly, with both significant positive and negative effects, reflecting exposure to currency risks affecting cash balances.
Overall Cash Balance Changes
Net increases or decreases in cash were irregular and influenced by the combined effects of operating results, investing and financing activities, and currency fluctuations. Notably, large negative cash changes occurred in quarters with substantial acquisitions and capital expenditures, while positive cash changes aligned with strong operating cash flows and financing activities.

In summary, the financial data shows a company engaged in sizable acquisition activities and capital investments alongside a generally solid operational cash generation. Income volatility and impairment charges signal occasional operational challenges or strategic recalibrations, while steady increases in share-based compensation and dividends underscore continued focus on employee incentives and shareholder returns. Cash flow patterns reveal episodic but large uses of cash for growth, balanced by financing arrangements and operational cash generation to support liquidity.