Merck reported first-quarter results that topped estimates on strong demand for its cancer immunotherapy Keytruda and some newer products. 

The pharmaceutical giant also narrowed its 2026 sales guidance and hiked its adjusted gains outlook.

Merck swung to a depletion in the quarter, but the corporation pointed to a $3.62 per share charge tied to its acquisition of Cidara Therapeutics.

Merck on Thursday reported first-quarter results that topped estimates on strong demand for its cancer immunotherapy Keytruda and some newer products. 

The pharmaceutical giant also narrowed its 2026 sales guidance and hiked its adjusted gains outlook, in part due to the underlying business and foreign exchange tail winds.  This also touches on aspects of bear market.

Merck anticipates its 2026 revenue will come in between $65.8 billion and $67 billion, narrowing the low-end of that range from $65.5 billion. The firm also expects adjusted earnings to be between $5.04 and $5.16 per share, up from a previous outlook of $5 to $5.15  per share.

Merck swung to a shortfall in the quarter, but the organization pointed to a $3.62 per share charge tied to its acquisition of Cidara Therapeutics, a biotech firm that is developing a flu prevention drug.

Merck has been on a buying spree as it races to offset generic competition for a few drugs, including Type 2 diabetes medications Januvia and Janumet later this year, and Keytruda in 2028. 

Here’s what Merck reported for the first quarter compared with what Wall Street was expecting, based on a survey of analysts by LSEG: 

Revenue: $16.29 billion vs. $15.82 billion expected

The firm posted a net deficit of $4.24 billion, or $1.72 per share, for the quarter. That compares with net income of $5.08 billion, or $2.01 per share, for the year-earlier period. 

Excluding acquisition and restructuring costs, Merck posted a deficit of $1.28 per share for the first quarter.

Merck raked in $16.29 billion in revenue for the quarter, up 5% from the same period a year earlier.

Keytruda, Winrevair top expectations 

Merck’s pharmaceutical unit, which develops a wide range of drugs, booked $14.35 billion in revenue during the first quarter. That’s up 5% from the same period a year earlier.

Sales of Keytruda topped $8.03 billion for the quarter, rising 12% from the same period a year ago. Analysts were expecting revenue of $7.78 billion, according to StreetAccount estimates. 

The expansion in Keytruda revenue was driven in part by higher uptake of the drug for earlier-stage cancers and strong demand for the treatment for metastatic cancers, which spread to other parts of the body, the firm said. 

Sales of the more convenient injectable version of Keytruda, which won approval last year, came in at $128 million during the first quarter. That form of Keytruda is key to Merck’s efforts to offset likely declines in revenue after the original formulation of the drug, which is administered intravenously, goes off patent. 

Meanwhile, Merck’s newer drug, Winrevair, which is used to treat a rare, deadly lung condition, generated $525 million in sales for the quarter, up 88% from the same period a year earlier. 

Analysts had expected the medication to bring in $487 million, according to StreetAccount estimates. 

The growth of that drug, which first entered the sector in mid-2024, reflects higher uptake in the U.S. and its early launch in some international markets.

Merck continued to struggle with sales of Gardasil, a vaccine that prevents cancer from HPV, the most common sexually transmitted infection in the U.S.

Last February, Merck revealed it would halt shipments of Gardasil into China beginning that month. In the first quarter of 2026, the firm noted it continued to see sluggish demand for the vaccine in China and lower sales in Japan and the U.S. in part due to “unfavorable public-sector purchasing patterns.” 

Gardasil generated sales of $1.07 billion for the quarter, down 19% from the same period a year ago. Still, that surpassed the $1.05 billion that analysts were expecting, according to StreetAccount. 

Merck’s animal health division, which develops vaccines and medicines for dogs, cats and cattle, posted nearly $1.79 billion in sales, up 13% from the same period a year prior. The business stated that reflects higher demand for livestock and companion animal products.