Goldman Sachs cut target for Merck & Co. stock to USD 155.00

Published on 10/21/2026 at 11:28 | Editorial responsibility: Rafael Müller, Editor-in-Chief AD HOC NEWS

Goldman Sachs cut target to USD 155.00 from USD 160.00 on October 16, 2026. Merck & Co. stock costs EUR 131.30 versus Xetra close EUR 132.00.

Analyst target and dates

Goldman Sachs cut its Merck target to USD 155.00 from USD 160.00 on October 16, 2026.
Merck reported USD 16.61 billion in second-quarter 2026 revenue, up 5.1 percent year over year.
Merck & Co. stock trades at EUR 131.30 at 11:20 a.m. CEST at Lang & Schwarz on October 21, 2026, 0.53 percent below the Xetra close of October 20, 2026.

Black and white documentary photograph of a scientist in protective gloves and mask working inside a laminar flow biosafety cabinet. Precise hands pipette cell culture medium into multi-well plates. CO2 incubators line the background in dramatic side-lit — Merck US58933Y1055 Zellkultur schwarzweiß: Forscherin pipettiert konzentriert in steriler Biosicherheitswerkbank, dokumentarische Reportage, Illustration mit AI erstellt.

Merck & Co. (ISIN US58933Y1055) was trading at EUR 131.30 at Lang & Schwarz on October 21, 2026, at 11:20 a.m. CEST, 0.53 percent below the October 20 Xetra close of EUR 132.00. Goldman Sachs cut its target for Merck & Co. from USD 160.00 to USD 155.00 on October 16, 2026, according to MarketScreener.

Merck balances growth and charges

The target reduction puts the emphasis on Merck's earnings transition rather than on the latest revenue trend. Goldman Sachs maintained a Buy rating while pointing to softer 2027 earnings as Merck increases spending on launches and clinical trials, the MarketScreener report said.

Merck's second-quarter 2026 revenue reached USD 16.61 billion, up 5.1 percent from the year-earlier quarter. The company posted a GAAP loss of USD 0.54 per share, while a USD 2.31-per-share charge tied to the Terns acquisition affected the result, according to Yahoo Finance.

What does the pipeline mean?

The answer is visible in the revenue mix. Keytruda and Keytruda Qlex generated USD 8.40 billion in second-quarter 2026 sales, while Winrevair produced USD 588.00 million, up 75.00 percent year over year, according to Yahoo Finance. The comparison shows why newer products must expand materially as Merck manages the longer-term concentration around its oncology franchise.

Three dates frame the stock

On August 4, 2026, Merck reported second-quarter revenue of USD 16.61 billion. On October 13, 2026, the company announced Paul J. Diaz's election to its board, effective November 1, 2026, according to the Merck & Co. investor-relations page. On October 16, 2026, Goldman Sachs cut its target to USD 155.00 from USD 160.00.

The next scheduled company event is the Investor Event at ESMO 2026 on October 26, 2026, listed on the Merck & Co. investor-relations page. MarketScreener lists the third-quarter 2026 earnings release for October 28, 2026.

Stock stays below the Xetra close

For investors, the immediate issue is the gap between resilient sales and weaker reported earnings after acquisition-related charges. The current euro quote also sits EUR 3.76 below the 52-week high of EUR 135.06, based on the same October 21 market snapshot.

Merck & Co. was trading at EUR 131.30 at Lang & Schwarz on October 21, 2026, at 11:20 a.m. CEST, 0.53 percent below the Xetra close of October 20, 2026, at EUR 132.00. The further course of trading is shown by the continuously updated real-time quote of Merck & Co. stock.