MRK vs PFE
Merck and Pfizer, 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.
- PFEBuy more21%
Pfizer's report on Nov 3 beat profit forecasts by 21%, and it pays a 5.8% dividend that it has raised for 15 years in a row.
Percent return
- MRK+66.58%
- PFE+23.18%
Nov 11, 2025 to Nov 11, 2026
Where they differ
- Company size: MRK $322B, PFE $143B.
- Sales growth, 1 yr: MRK +4.9%, PFE +1.3%. MRK is ahead.
- Price for $1 of next year's profit: MRK $17, PFE $10. PFE is ahead.
- Profit per $1 of sales: MRK 15¢, PFE 29¢. PFE is ahead.
- Cash minus debt: MRK −$46.8B, PFE −$49.1B. MRK is ahead.
- Price change, 1 yr: MRK +67%, PFE +23%. MRK is ahead. S&P 500 +12%.
- How much the price swings: MRK 33%, PFE 20%. PFE is ahead.
| Measure | MRKMerck | PFEPfizer |
|---|---|---|
| Price and returns | ||
| Price | $147.12 | $29.44 |
| Today | −0.63% | Best in this row: +0.27% |
| 1 month | +1.09% | Best in this row: +5.66% |
| 3 months | Best in this row: +13.47% | +12.21% |
| This year | Best in this row: +42.71% | +26.19% |
| 1 year | Best in this row: +66.58% | +23.18% |
| 5 years | Best in this row: +104.12% | −23.09% |
| From 52-week high | −5.4% | −3.0% |
| How much it swings (90 days) | 33% | Best in this row: 20% |
| Valuation | ||
| Market value | $322B | $143B |
| Price vs last year's earnings | 36.7× | Best in this row: 19.2× |
| Price vs next year's expected earnings | 17.4× | Best in this row: 10.4× |
| Price vs earnings, adjusted for growth | 2.22× | – |
| Price to sales | 5.4× | Best in this row: 2.6× |
| Price vs cash it brings in | 22.5× | Best in this row: 14.2× |
| Company value vs operating profit | 13.8× | Best in this row: 8.7× |
| Price vs earnings, against its own past (0 = cheapest) | 100 | Best in this row: 20 |
| Growth | ||
| Revenue growth, 1 year | Best in this row: +4.9% | +1.3% |
| Revenue growth a year, last 3 years | Best in this row: +3.1% | −14.8% |
| Earnings per share growth, last year | −48.3% | Best in this row: −5.4% |
| Earnings per share growth expected next year | Best in this row: +221.1% | −3.0% |
| Profitability | ||
| Kept from sales after making the product | Best in this row: 76.9% | 74.9% |
| Kept as operating profit | 15.1% | Best in this row: 29.1% |
| Kept as final profit | 3.6% | Best in this row: 6.3% |
| Kept as spare cash | – | 18.5% |
| Profit on shareholders' money | Best in this row: 5.1% | 4.5% |
| Profit on all money put in | 5.9% | Best in this row: 12.8% |
| Balance sheet | ||
| Net cash (cash minus debt) | Best in this row: −$46.8B | −$49.1B |
| Debt for each $1 of shareholders' money | 1.20× | Best in this row: 0.71× |
| Short-term assets per $1 of bills due | 1.35× | Best in this row: 1.42× |
| Dividend yield | 2.32% | Best in this row: 5.85% |
| Share of profit paid as dividends | 344% | Best in this row: 245% |
| Our readPro | ||
| Our call | Buy more | Buy more |
| 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. | Pfizer's report on Nov 3 beat profit forecasts by 21%, and it pays a 5.8% dividend that it has raised for 15 years in a row. |
| Where the price sits | in the full report | in the full report |
| Our overall score (out of 100) | Best in this row: 53 | 43 |
| Our value score | 58 | Best in this row: 87 |
| Our growth score | Best in this row: 30 | 2 |
| Our quality score | Best in this row: 80 | 59 |
| Our price trend score | Best in this row: 61 | 53 |
| Earnings and analysts | ||
| Analyst consensus | Buy | Hold |
| To average analyst target | Best in this row: +10.2% | +2.9% |
| Average analyst target | $162.14 | $30.28 |
| Analysts rating it a buy | Best in this row: 68% | 32% |
| Buy ratings added, 3 months | −1 | −1 |
| Analysts covering | 22 | 21 |
MRK: faster sales growth
Our pick of these: Merck
Sales growth +4.9% vs +1.3%
MRK +4.9%, PFE +1.3%.Forward P/E per point of sales growth 3.56 vs no growth
MRK 3.56, PFE no growth.+10.2% to the average analyst target, vs +2.9%
MRK +10.2%, PFE +2.9%.Where it loses: PFE has wider profit margins, 29.1% vs 15.1%
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Prices as of yesterday, 3:59 PM ET. A view, not advice.