Dollar cost averaging (DCA) in MRK means investing a fixed amount at regular intervals, regardless of share price. This strategy reduces timing risk and builds wealth steadily through market ups and downs.
How This Calculator Works
Our DCA calculator simulates real market conditions using historical price data. It accounts for dividend reinvestment (DRIP), where each dividend payment automatically purchases additional shares. You can adjust the investment amount, frequency, time period, and compare against benchmarks like the S&P 500 and Nasdaq-100.
Same amount invested each month — only the day of purchase changes. How much does intra-month timing actually matter?
Best Timing DCA
StrategyBuy on monthly low
Total Return+46.6%
Final Value$70.4K
Perfectly timed — impossible in practice
Your DCA
StrategyBuy on 1st of month
Total Return+41.6%
Final Value$68.0K
Consistent — no timing needed
Worst Timing DCA
StrategyBuy on monthly high
Total Return+37.4%
Final Value$66.0K
Worst possible — still beats not investing
Best vs Worst gap9.2 pp
Your timing vs best-5.0%
Your timing vs worst+4.2%
If You Keep Investing…
Based on this stock's historical CAGR of 5.6%/yr — put in vs. walk away with.
Your Plan
At $500/mo, this could grow into:
3 Years$20K~1.1x your moneyfrom $18K invested
5 Years$34K~1.1x your moneyfrom $30K invested
10 Years$80K~1.3x your moneyfrom $60K invested
20 Years$218K~1.8x your moneyfrom $120K invested
Compare Other Monthly Amounts
Same CAGR assumption. Use this to pressure-test different monthly commitments.
Monthly
3 Years~1.1x your money
5 Years~1.1x your money
10 Years~1.3x your money
20 Years~1.8x your money
$100/mo
$4K+$305 est. gain
$7K+$889 est. gain
$16K+$4K est. gain
$44K+$20K est. gain
$250/mo
$10K+$762 est. gain
$17K+$2K est. gain
$40K+$10K est. gain
$109K+$49K est. gain
$500/mo
$20K+$2K est. gain
$34K+$4K est. gain
$80K+$20K est. gain
$218K+$98K est. gain
$1,000/mo
$39K+$3K est. gain
$69K+$9K est. gain
$160K+$40K est. gain
$436K+$196K est. gain
* Projection assumes historical CAGR of 5.6% continues. Actual returns will vary.
Your DCA Results by Date
77 purchases
Date
Price
Invested
Portfolio Value
% Gain
Gain ($)
Jan 2, 2020
$87.76
$10,000
$10,000
+0.00%
$0
Feb 3, 2020
$83.28
$10,500
$9,990
-4.86%
$-510
Mar 2, 2020
$77.59
$11,000
$9,807
-10.85%
$-1,193
Apr 2, 2020
$73.30
$11,500
$9,838
-14.45%
$-1,662
May 4, 2020
$73.29
$12,000
$10,337
-13.86%
$-1,663
Jun 2, 2020
$77.08
$12,500
$11,372
-9.03%
$-1,128
Jul 2, 2020
$75.12
$13,000
$11,671
-10.22%
$-1,329
Aug 3, 2020
$78.70
$13,500
$12,727
-5.72%
$-773
Sep 2, 2020
$82.89
$14,000
$13,905
-0.68%
$-95
Oct 2, 2020
$77.04
$14,500
$13,517
-6.78%
$-983
Nov 2, 2020
$73.14
$15,000
$13,333
-11.11%
$-1,667
Dec 2, 2020
$78.03
$15,500
$14,725
-5.00%
$-775
Jan 4, 2021
$77.20
$16,000
$15,186
-5.09%
$-814
Feb 2, 2021
$74.16
$16,500
$15,088
-8.56%
$-1,412
Mar 2, 2021
$69.46
$17,000
$14,632
-13.93%
$-2,368
Apr 5, 2021
$73.42
$17,500
$16,101
-8.00%
$-1,399
May 3, 2021
$72.45
$18,000
$16,388
-8.96%
$-1,612
Jun 2, 2021
$72.34
$18,500
$16,863
-8.85%
$-1,637
Jul 2, 2021
$78.60
$19,000
$18,980
-0.10%
$-20
Aug 2, 2021
$76.18
$19,500
$18,896
-3.10%
$-604
Sep 2, 2021
$77.12
$20,000
$19,629
-1.86%
$-371
Oct 4, 2021
$83.10
$20,500
$21,842
+6.54%
$1,342
Nov 2, 2021
$89.02
$21,000
$23,898
+13.80%
$2,898
Dec 2, 2021
$73.89
$21,500
$20,336
-5.41%
$-1,164
Jan 3, 2022
$76.87
$22,000
$21,854
-0.66%
$-146
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Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about DCA investing in MRK
Investing $500 per month in Merck & Co., Inc. (MRK) over the past 6 years would be worth approximately $68K today. That's +41.6% total return on $48K invested, with a +5.6% compound annual growth rate (CAGR). This includes $7K from reinvested dividends.