Merck (MRK) Stock Analysis

June 13, 2026

Here is a fundamental analysis of Merck (MRK), benchmarking its profitability, financial strength, dividend and valuation against its industry group peers.

Performance

Cumulative Growth

MRK

GSPC

Merck (MRK) vs. S&P 500 (GSPC): Growth of a $10,000 investment over the past five years. Adjusted for dividends and splits.

Trailing Returns

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Trailing total returns for Merck (MRK) and S&P 500 (GSPC). Returns over one year are annualized.

Performance at a Glance

Merck (MRK) metric values compared with Pharmaceuticals, Biotechnology & Life Sciences industry-group medians
Metric	Current stock: MRK	Industry group median
1-Year Return	50.79%	44.56%

Risk

Drawdown

MRK

GSPC

Merck (MRK) vs. S&P 500 (GSPC): Drawdown from the running peak over the past five years. Each line shows the decline from its prior peak; 0% marks a new high.

Risk at a Glance

Merck (MRK) metric values compared with Pharmaceuticals, Biotechnology & Life Sciences industry-group medians
Metric	Current stock: MRK	Industry group median
1-Year Volatility	27.18%	67.11%
Beta	0.20	0.93

Company Profile

Company profile fields for Merck (MRK)
Profile Item	MRK
Name	Merck & Co., Inc.
Country/Region	United States
GICS Sector	Health Care
GICS Industry Group	Pharmaceuticals, Biotechnology & Life Sciences
GICS Industry	Pharmaceuticals
GICS Sub-Industry	Pharmaceuticals
Market Capitalization	294.03 billion USD
Currency	USD
Exchange	NYSE
Listing Date	January 2, 1962
Security Type	Common Stock

Valuation

Price-to-Earnings Ratio (TTM)

Merck (MRK) trades at P/E ratio of 33.54, near the industry’s usual earnings multiple. The stock is not showing a clear peer discount or premium on trailing earnings.

MRK

Pharmaceuticals, Biotechnology & Life Sciences industry group

33.54

Group distribution

Max: 77.14
Q3: 43.78
MRK: 33.54
Median: 24.68
Q1: 15.27
Min: 1.70

Largest peers

ABBV: 111.09
LLY: 40.32
MRK: 33.54
JNJ: 27.94
AZN: 26.96
NVS: 21.93
NVO: 10.30

Where Merck (MRK) stands on P/E ratio within its Pharmaceuticals, Biotechnology & Life Sciences peer group — the box is the group’s distribution and the dots its largest members.

Price-to-Sales Ratio (TTM)

Merck (MRK) trades at 4.47 on P/S ratio, roughly in the peer group’s normal range. The market is not making a strong cheap-or-rich statement about its revenue base.

MRK

Pharmaceuticals, Biotechnology & Life Sciences industry group

4.47

Group distribution

Max: 55.38
Q3: 24.42
Median: 6.98
MRK: 4.47
Q1: 3.30
Min: 0.01

Largest peers

LLY: 13.98
ABBV: 6.40
JNJ: 6.02
NVS: 5.16
AZN: 4.59
MRK: 4.47
NVO: 0.59

Where Merck (MRK) stands on P/S ratio within its Pharmaceuticals, Biotechnology & Life Sciences peer group — the box is the group’s distribution and the dots its largest members.

Price-to-Book Ratio (MRQ)

Merck (MRK) trades at 6.41 on P/B ratio, in the higher book-value quartile. The market is paying a premium to book, so stronger ROE, cleaner assets, or a better growth profile need to justify it.

MRK

Pharmaceuticals, Biotechnology & Life Sciences industry group

6.41

Group distribution

Max: 13.23
MRK: 6.41
Q3: 6.38
Median: 3.46
Q1: 1.64
Min: -5.17

Largest peers

LLY: 32.45
NVS: 7.58
JNJ: 7.14
MRK: 6.41
NVO: 6.22
AZN: 5.85
ABBV: -60.45

Where Merck (MRK) stands on P/B ratio within its Pharmaceuticals, Biotechnology & Life Sciences peer group — the box is the group’s distribution and the dots its largest members.

Valuation at a Glance

Merck (MRK) metric values compared with Pharmaceuticals, Biotechnology & Life Sciences industry-group medians
Metric	Current stock: MRK	Industry group median
Price-to-Earnings Ratio (TTM)	33.54	24.68
Price-to-Sales Ratio (TTM)	4.47	6.98
Price-to-Book Ratio (MRQ)	6.41	3.46
Free Cash Flow Yield	4.78%	-2.37%

Profitability

Return on Equity (TTM)

Merck (MRK) posts ROE of 18.94%, in the upper peer quartile. That suggests the company earns more from each dollar of shareholders’ equity than most industry peers, a useful capital-efficiency signal.

MRK

Pharmaceuticals, Biotechnology & Life Sciences industry group

18.94%

Group distribution

Max: 101.32%
MRK: 18.94%
Q3: 2.92%
Median: -31.26%
Q1: -62.68%
Min: -158.89%

Largest peers

LLY: 107.46%
NVO: 71.40%
NVS: 34.93%
JNJ: 26.42%
AZN: 23.48%
MRK: 18.94%
ABBV: --

Where Merck (MRK) stands on ROE within its Pharmaceuticals, Biotechnology & Life Sciences peer group — the box is the group’s distribution and the dots its largest members.

Net Profit Margin (TTM)

Merck (MRK) keeps 13.59% of revenue as net profit on net margin, above the industry benchmark range. That is unusually strong bottom-line conversion, though tax effects, asset sales, or other one-off gains should be checked before treating it as durable.

MRK

Pharmaceuticals, Biotechnology & Life Sciences industry group

13.59%

Group distribution

MRK: 13.59%
Max: 12.76%
Q3: 4.00%
Median: 0.00%
Q1: -2.26%
Min: -11.53%

Largest peers

NVO: 37.21%
LLY: 34.99%
NVS: 23.92%
JNJ: 21.83%
AZN: 17.19%
MRK: 13.59%
ABBV: 5.79%

Where Merck (MRK) stands on net margin within its Pharmaceuticals, Biotechnology & Life Sciences peer group — the box is the group’s distribution and the dots its largest members.

Operating Profit Margin (TTM)

Merck (MRK) turns 38.60% of revenue into operating profit, putting operating margin in the upper peer quartile. Before financing and taxes enter the picture, the day-to-day business keeps more of each sales dollar than most industry peers.

MRK

Pharmaceuticals, Biotechnology & Life Sciences industry group

38.60%

Group distribution

Max: 100.30%
MRK: 38.60%
Q3: 4.40%
Median: 0.00%
Q1: -131.52%
Min: -333.43%

Largest peers

NVO: 61.57%
LLY: 49.39%
MRK: 38.60%
ABBV: 32.16%
NVS: 30.48%
AZN: 27.94%
JNJ: 27.41%

Where Merck (MRK) stands on operating margin within its Pharmaceuticals, Biotechnology & Life Sciences peer group — the box is the group’s distribution and the dots its largest members.

Profitability at a Glance

Merck (MRK) metric values compared with Pharmaceuticals, Biotechnology & Life Sciences industry-group medians
Metric	Current stock: MRK	Industry group median
Return on Equity (TTM)	18.94%	-31.26%
Return on Assets (TTM)	12.58%	-14.70%
Net Profit Margin (TTM)	13.59%	0.00%
Operating Profit Margin (TTM)	38.60%	0.00%
Gross Profit Margin (TTM)	76.73%	33.58%

Financial Strength

Current Ratio (MRQ)

Merck (MRK) has current ratio of 1.30, in the tighter-liquidity quartile for its industry. The short-term cushion is thinner than most peers carry, even if the absolute comfort level still depends on the business model.

MRK

Pharmaceuticals, Biotechnology & Life Sciences industry group

1.30

Group distribution

Max: 24.81
Q3: 11.75
Median: 5.57
Q1: 2.69
MRK: 1.30
Min: 0.23

Largest peers

LLY: 1.50
MRK: 1.30
JNJ: 1.03
AZN: 0.91
NVS: 0.85
ABBV: 0.80
NVO: 0.79

Where Merck (MRK) stands on current ratio within its Pharmaceuticals, Biotechnology & Life Sciences peer group — the box is the group’s distribution and the dots its largest members.

Debt-to-Equity Ratio (MRQ)

Merck (MRK) has debt-to-equity ratio of 1.07, in the higher-leverage quartile for its industry. The heavier reliance on borrowing can make earnings, rates, or refinancing conditions matter more.

MRK

Pharmaceuticals, Biotechnology & Life Sciences industry group

1.07

Group distribution

Max: 1.60
MRK: 1.07
Q3: 0.68
Median: 0.15
Q1: 0.02
Min: 0.00

Largest peers

LLY: 1.39
NVS: 1.21
MRK: 1.07
NVO: 0.72
AZN: 0.72
JNJ: 0.68
ABBV: --

Where Merck (MRK) stands on debt-to-equity ratio within its Pharmaceuticals, Biotechnology & Life Sciences peer group — the box is the group’s distribution and the dots its largest members.

Financial Strength at a Glance

Merck (MRK) metric values compared with Pharmaceuticals, Biotechnology & Life Sciences industry-group medians
Metric	Current stock: MRK	Industry group median
Current Ratio (MRQ)	1.30	5.57
Debt-to-Equity Ratio (MRQ)	1.07	0.15
Net Debt / EBITDA	1.47	1.09

Dividends

Dividend Yield (TTM)

Merck (MRK) has dividend yield of 2.86%, above the entire industry range. That headline income is large, but yields this far above peers often come from a falling share price or an at-risk payout, so dividend safety matters more than the percentage itself.

MRK

Pharmaceuticals, Biotechnology & Life Sciences industry group

2.86%

Group distribution

MRK: 2.86%
Max: 0.00%
Q3: 0.00%
Median: 0.00%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

Largest peers

NVO: 4.11%
NVS: 3.10%
ABBV: 3.04%
MRK: 2.86%
JNJ: 2.23%
AZN: 1.77%
LLY: 0.61%

Where Merck (MRK) stands on dividend yield within its Pharmaceuticals, Biotechnology & Life Sciences peer group — the box is the group’s distribution and the dots its largest members.

Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)

Merck (MRK) has payout ratio of 93.52%, above the peer distribution for its industry. The dividend consumes more reported earnings than peers normally do, leaving unusually thin earnings cover.

MRK

Pharmaceuticals, Biotechnology & Life Sciences industry group

93.52%

Group distribution

MRK: 93.52%
Max: 0.00%
Q3: 0.00%
Median: 0.00%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

Largest peers

ABBV: 325.98%
MRK: 93.52%
NVS: 67.91%
JNJ: 60.25%
AZN: 47.70%
NVO: 42.59%
LLY: 22.13%

Where Merck (MRK) stands on payout ratio within its Pharmaceuticals, Biotechnology & Life Sciences peer group — the box is the group’s distribution and the dots its largest members.

Dividends at a Glance

Merck (MRK) metric values compared with Pharmaceuticals, Biotechnology & Life Sciences industry-group medians
Metric	Current stock: MRK	Industry group median
Dividend Yield (TTM)	2.86%	0.00%
Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)	93.52%	0.00%