MRK vs NVO
Merck and Novo Nordisk A/S, side by side.
Prices and company dataas of yesterday's close
- MRKBuy more17%
Merck's report on Oct 29 beat profit forecasts by 17%, and it pays a 2.3% dividend that it has raised for 15 years in a row.
- NVOSell some
Novo Nordisk still faces obesity share risk and weak analyst support, so we wouldn’t buy more and would sell some on a bounce.
Percent return
- MRK+66.58%
- NVO−12.23%
Nov 11, 2025 to Nov 11, 2026
Where they differ
- Company size: MRK $322B, NVO $135B.
- Sales growth, 1 yr: MRK +4.9%, NVO +5.7%. NVO is ahead.
- Price for $1 of next year's profit: MRK $17, NVO $12. NVO is ahead.
- Profit per $1 of sales: MRK 15¢, NVO 51¢. NVO is ahead.
- Cash minus debt: MRK −$46.8B, NVO −$88.1B. MRK is ahead.
- Price change, 1 yr: MRK +67%, NVO −12%. MRK is ahead. S&P 500 +12%.
- How much the price swings: MRK 33%, NVO 36%. MRK is ahead.
| Measure | MRKMerck | NVONovo Nordisk A/S |
|---|---|---|
| Price and returns | ||
| Price | $147.12 | $41.10 |
| Today | −0.63% | Best in this row: +0.98% |
| 1 month | +1.09% | Best in this row: +6.34% |
| 3 months | Best in this row: +13.47% | −11.75% |
| This year | Best in this row: +42.71% | −15.21% |
| 1 year | Best in this row: +66.58% | −12.23% |
| 5 years | Best in this row: +104.12% | −18.74% |
| From 52-week high | −5.4% | −32.5% |
| How much it swings (90 days) | Best in this row: 33% | 36% |
| Valuation | ||
| Market value | $322B | $135B |
| Price vs last year's earnings | 36.7× | Best in this row: 10.2× |
| Price vs next year's expected earnings | 17.4× | Best in this row: 12.0× |
| Price vs earnings, adjusted for growth | 2.22× | – |
| Price to sales | 5.4× | Best in this row: 3.5× |
| Price vs cash it brings in | 22.5× | Best in this row: 16.6× |
| Company value vs operating profit | 13.8× | Best in this row: 6.9× |
| Price vs earnings, against its own past (0 = cheapest) | 100 | – |
| Growth | ||
| Revenue growth, 1 year | +4.9% | Best in this row: +5.7% |
| Revenue growth a year, last 3 years | +3.1% | Best in this row: +20.4% |
| Earnings per share growth, last year | −48.3% | Best in this row: +10.7% |
| Earnings per share growth expected next year | Best in this row: +221.1% | −1.4% |
| Profitability | ||
| Kept from sales after making the product | 76.9% | Best in this row: 83.3% |
| Kept as operating profit | 15.1% | Best in this row: 50.8% |
| Kept as final profit | 3.6% | Best in this row: 33.9% |
| Kept as spare cash | – | 21.5% |
| Profit on shareholders' money | 5.1% | Best in this row: 58.4% |
| Profit on all money put in | 5.9% | Best in this row: 42.6% |
| Balance sheet | ||
| Net cash (cash minus debt) | Best in this row: −$46.8B | −$88.1B |
| Debt for each $1 of shareholders' money | 1.20× | Best in this row: 0.62× |
| Short-term assets per $1 of bills due | Best in this row: 1.35× | 0.84× |
| Dividend yield | 2.32% | Best in this row: 3.18% |
| Share of profit paid as dividends | 344% | Best in this row: 34% |
| Our readPro | ||
| Our call | Buy more | Sell some |
| Why | Merck's report on Oct 29 beat profit forecasts by 17%, and it pays a 2.3% dividend that it has raised for 15 years in a row. | Novo Nordisk still faces obesity share risk and weak analyst support, so we wouldn’t buy more and would sell some on a bounce. |
| Where the price sits | in the full report | in the full report |
| Our overall score (out of 100) | 53 | Best in this row: 55 |
| Our value score | 58 | Best in this row: 78 |
| Our growth score | 30 | Best in this row: 42 |
| Our quality score | 80 | Best in this row: 83 |
| Our price trend score | Best in this row: 61 | 33 |
| Earnings and analysts | ||
| Analyst consensus | Buy | Hold |
| To average analyst target | Best in this row: +10.2% | +4.7% |
| Average analyst target | $162.14 | $43.04 |
| Analysts rating it a buy | Best in this row: 68% | 21% |
| Buy ratings added, 3 months | −1 | Best in this row: 0 |
| Analysts covering | 22 | 4 |
MRK: our only Buy more, with more analyst upside
Our pick of these: Merck
+10.2% to the average analyst target, vs +4.7%
MRK +10.2%, NVO +4.7%.1-year return +66.6% vs −12.2%, S&P 500 +12.4%
MRK +66.6%, NVO −12.2%.68% of analysts rate it a buy, vs 21%
MRK 68%, NVO 21%.Where it loses: NVO has a lower P/E per point of growth, 2.10 vs 3.56
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Prices as of yesterday, 3:59 PM ET. A view, not advice.