MRK vs PFE: Which Is the Better Buy?
Side-by-side comparison of Merck & Co., Inc. and Pfizer 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
Pfizer Inc. · Healthcare
$27.64
+12.0% upside to fair value
Med Conviction
Grade B
QuantHub Verdict
PFE has more upside to fair value
(+12.0%).
These are model outputs — not personalized investment advice.
See all research →
Valuation & Fundamentals
| Metric |
MRK |
PFE |
| Current Price |
$147.17 |
$27.64 |
| Fair Value Estimate |
$141.07 |
$30.94 |
| Upside to Fair Value |
-4.1%
|
+12.0%
|
| Market Cap |
$363.5B |
$157.5B |
| Forward P/E |
—
|
—
|
| EV / EBITDA |
29.6x
|
17.4x
|
| Price / Sales |
5.5x
|
2.5x
|
| Price / FCF |
22.6x
|
14.3x
|
| Revenue Growth YoY |
+5.1%
|
+2.6%
|
| Gross Margin |
75.4%
|
71.3%
|
| Operating Margin |
16.7%
|
25.1%
|
| Return on Equity |
6.6%
|
4.9%
|
| Dividend Yield |
2.31% |
6.22% |
| FCF Yield |
4.42%
|
6.97%
|
| 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…
Pfizer is a global biopharmaceutical leader with a portfolio spanning cardiovascular, oncology, vaccines, immunology, and rare disease, anchored by Eliquis, the Prevnar family, Vyndaqel, Ibrance, Xtandi, Comirnaty, and Paxlovid, and supported by roughly 75,000 employees and a contract manufacturing division. Business quality is medium rather than high: TTM gross margin of 71.3% and TTM operating …
Accumulation Zones
| Metric |
MRK |
PFE |
| Zone Low |
$105.80 |
$23.21 |
| Zone High |
$119.91 |
$26.30 |
| In Buy Zone? |
No
|
No
|