⚠ A $12.1 Billion IntangibleModerate threat

Merck & Co. (MRK) — threat to the moat

Ohtuvayre carries a $12.1 billion asset on Merck's balance sheet, and slower sales would turn it into a one-quarter loss.

Buying Verona changed Merck's balance sheet in a way the earlier deals did not. Other intangible assets rose to $26,681 million at the end of 2025 from $16,370 million1, largely because of the $12.1 billion recorded for Ohtuvayre2.

Other intangible assets ($M)16,370End 202426,681End 2025Merck Forms 10-K FY2024 and FY2025, balance sheet
Verona added about $10 billion.

That asset is now tested against the drug's sales. Ohtuvayre sold $204 million in the second quarter of 20263. If its long-term forecast falls, the asset is impaired and the loss hits earnings in one quarter.

Merck has been here before with acquired research that disappointed, as in the 2022 nemtabrutinib impairment of $1.7 billion4. A launched product is less risky than a trial, but it is not riskless: competition and pricing can shrink its forecast.

Amortisation is already rising. Unallocated amortisation was $2,044 million in 2023, $2,395 million in 2024 and $2,793 million in 20255, and a full year of Ohtuvayre will add to it.

The warning is an annual Ohtuvayre growth rate that falls sharply before the drug reaches $1 billion a year. That would make an impairment likely.

References
  1. ReportedOther intangible assets rose to $26,681 million at the end of 2025 from $16,370 million, largely because of the $12.1 billion recorded for Ohtuvayre.
    Merck & Co. Form 10-K for fiscal 2025 - financial statements and notes: earnings, cash flow, balance sheet, acquisitions, research and segment profit. — FY2025 · publ. 24 February 2026 · source ↗
  2. ReportedOther intangible assets rose to $26,681 million at the end of 2025 from $16,370 million, largely because of the $12.1 billion recorded for Ohtuvayre.
    Merck & Co. Form 10-K for fiscal 2025 - financial statements and notes: earnings, cash flow, balance sheet, acquisitions, research and segment profit. — FY2025 · publ. 24 February 2026 · source ↗
  3. ReportedOhtuvayre sold $204 million in the second quarter of 2026.
    Merck second-quarter 2026 results release, Form 8-K exhibit 99.1 - sales by product and pipeline highlights. — Q2 2026 · publ. 4 August 2026 · source ↗
  4. ReportedMerck has been here before with acquired research that disappointed, as in the 2022 nemtabrutinib impairment of $1.7 billion.
    Merck & Co. Form 10-K for fiscal 2023 - product sales for 2021-2023, the Prometheus, Daiichi Sankyo and Imago charges, impairments, receivables concentration and the Zhifei distribution arrangement in China. — FY2023 · publ. February 2024 · source ↗
  5. ReportedUnallocated amortisation was $2,044 million in 2023, $2,395 million in 2024 and $2,793 million in 2025, and a full year of Ohtuvayre will add to it.
    Merck & Co. Form 10-K for fiscal 2025 - Item 1 business: products, customers, segments and people. — FY2025 · publ. 24 February 2026 · source ↗
Sources
Generated September 25, 2026