KO vs MRK: Which Is the Better Buy?
Side-by-side comparison of The Coca-Cola Company and Merck & Co., Inc. — fair value, conviction, valuation metrics, and QuantHub research signals.
Updated 2026-07-17.
The Coca-Cola Company · Consumer Defensive
$84.92
-10.2% upside to fair value
Grade C
High Quality
VS
Merck & Co., Inc. · Healthcare
$113.87
-12.1% upside to fair value
Grade D
High Quality
QuantHub Verdict
KO has more upside to fair value
(-10.2%).
KO trades at a lower forward P/E
(26.6x).
These are model outputs — not personalized investment advice.
See all research →
Valuation & Fundamentals
| Metric |
KO |
MRK |
| Current Price |
$84.92 |
$113.87 |
| Fair Value Estimate |
$76.30 |
$100.14 |
| Upside to Fair Value |
-10.2%
|
-12.1%
|
| Market Cap |
$365.4B |
$281.2B |
| Forward P/E |
26.6x
|
32.0x
|
| EV / EBITDA |
20.7x
|
17.3x
|
| Price / Sales |
7.4x
|
4.3x
|
| Price / FCF |
29.1x
|
19.9x
|
| Revenue Growth YoY |
+12.1%
|
+4.3%
|
| Gross Margin |
61.7%
|
75.9%
|
| Operating Margin |
29.3%
|
27.6%
|
| Return on Equity |
43.6%
|
17.9%
|
| Dividend Yield |
0% |
0% |
| FCF Yield |
3.44%
|
5.02%
|
| Analyst Consensus |
Strong Buy
|
Hold
|
Investment Thesis
The Coca-Cola Company is a leading global beverage company specializing in non-alcoholic drinks with a durable competitive moat driven by its strong brand and extensive distribution network. The business quality is high, evidenced by a 43.6% return on equity, robust gross margin of 61.7%, and solid revenue and earnings growth of 12.1% and 17.8% respectively in the most recent quarter. Despite the…
Merck & Co., Inc. is a leading global healthcare company specializing in pharmaceuticals, vaccines, and animal health products. Its business quality is high, supported by a durable competitive moat anchored in the dominant global position of Keytruda in PD-1/PD-L1 oncology, a strong vaccines portfolio including Gardasil, and scale in R&D and manufacturing. The company benefits from a seasoned lea…
Accumulation Zones
| Metric |
KO |
MRK |
| Zone Low |
$57.22 |
$75.11 |
| Zone High |
$64.85 |
$85.12 |
| In Buy Zone? |
No
|
No
|