ISRG vs MRK: Which Is the Better Buy?
Side-by-side comparison of Intuitive Surgical, Inc. and Merck & Co., Inc. — fair value, conviction, valuation metrics, and QuantHub research signals.
Updated 2026-09-25.
Intuitive Surgical, Inc. · Healthcare
$399.52
+22.4% upside to fair value
Med Conviction
Grade B
High Quality
VS
Merck & Co., Inc. · Healthcare
$147.17
-4.1% upside to fair value
Med Conviction
Grade C
QuantHub Verdict
ISRG has more upside to fair value
(+22.4%).
These are model outputs — not personalized investment advice.
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Valuation & Fundamentals
| Metric |
ISRG |
MRK |
| Current Price |
$399.52 |
$147.17 |
| Fair Value Estimate |
$488.97 |
$141.07 |
| Upside to Fair Value |
+22.4%
|
-4.1%
|
| Market Cap |
$141.1B |
$363.5B |
| Forward P/E |
—
|
—
|
| EV / EBITDA |
30.7x
|
29.6x
|
| Price / Sales |
12.8x
|
5.5x
|
| Price / FCF |
44.0x
|
22.6x
|
| Revenue Growth YoY |
+18.5%
|
+5.1%
|
| Gross Margin |
66.7%
|
75.4%
|
| Operating Margin |
31.3%
|
16.7%
|
| Return on Equity |
17.8%
|
6.6%
|
| Dividend Yield |
0% |
2.31% |
| FCF Yield |
2.28%
|
4.42%
|
| Analyst Consensus |
Strong Buy
|
Buy
|
Investment Thesis
Intuitive Surgical develops, produces, and commercializes the da Vinci surgical system and the Ion endoluminal system, along with instruments, accessories, training, and digital solutions that drive a large installed-base and recurring-revenue model. Business quality is high: TTM gross margin of 66.7%, operating margin of 31.3%, net margin of 28.4%, ROE of 17.8%, and revenue growth of 18.5% with …
Merck & Co., Inc. is a global healthcare leader with two core divisions, Pharmaceuticals and Animal Health, spanning oncology, vaccines, acute hospital care, immunology, neuroscience, virology, cardiovascular and diabetes, and it employs roughly 74,000 people under CEO Robert Davis. The business quality is medium: TTM gross margin of 75.4% and TTM operating margin of 16.7% reflect a genuinely hig…
Accumulation Zones
| Metric |
ISRG |
MRK |
| Zone Low |
$366.73 |
$105.80 |
| Zone High |
$415.62 |
$119.91 |
| In Buy Zone? |
Yes
|
No
|