MRK vs NKE: Which Is the Better Buy?
Side-by-side comparison of Merck & Co., Inc. and NIKE, Inc. — fair value, conviction, valuation metrics, and QuantHub research signals.
Updated 2026-09-18.
Merck & Co., Inc. · Healthcare
$147.17
-4.1% upside to fair value
Med Conviction
Grade C
VS
NIKE, Inc. · Consumer Cyclical
$35.78
+9.9% upside to fair value
Med Conviction
Grade C
QuantHub Verdict
NKE has more upside to fair value
(+9.9%).
These are model outputs — not personalized investment advice.
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Valuation & Fundamentals
| Metric |
MRK |
NKE |
| Current Price |
$147.17 |
$35.78 |
| Fair Value Estimate |
$141.07 |
$39.33 |
| Upside to Fair Value |
-4.1%
|
+9.9%
|
| Market Cap |
$363.5B |
$53.0B |
| Forward P/E |
—
|
—
|
| EV / EBITDA |
29.6x
|
12.0x
|
| Price / Sales |
5.5x
|
1.1x
|
| Price / FCF |
22.6x
|
24.3x
|
| Revenue Growth YoY |
+5.1%
|
-1.1%
|
| Gross Margin |
75.4%
|
42.9%
|
| Operating Margin |
16.7%
|
8.2%
|
| Return on Equity |
6.6%
|
22.0%
|
| Dividend Yield |
2.31% |
4.58% |
| FCF Yield |
4.42%
|
4.12%
|
| Analyst Consensus |
Buy
|
Hold
|
Investment Thesis
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…
NIKE designs, markets and distributes athletic footwear, apparel and equipment through the Nike, Jordan and Converse brands, supported by global athlete marketing, valuable intellectual property and a broad wholesale and owned-digital network. Business quality is medium: its brand moat and 22.0% ROE remain meaningful, but the moat is narrowing amid intense competition, weak direct sales and uneve…
Accumulation Zones
| Metric |
MRK |
NKE |
| Zone Low |
$105.80 |
$29.50 |
| Zone High |
$119.91 |
$33.43 |
| In Buy Zone? |
No
|
No
|