MRK vs WMT: Which Is the Better Buy?

Side-by-side comparison of Merck & Co., Inc. and Walmart Inc. โ€” fair value, conviction, valuation metrics, and QuantHub research signals. Updated 2026-09-19.
Merck & Co., Inc. ยท Healthcare
$147.17
-4.1% upside to fair value
Med Conviction Grade C
VS
Walmart Inc. ยท Consumer Defensive
$106.73
-10.8% upside to fair value
Med Conviction Grade C High Quality
QuantHub Verdict
MRK has more upside to fair value (-4.1%). These are model outputs โ€” not personalized investment advice. See all research โ†’
Valuation & Fundamentals
Metric MRK WMT
Current Price $147.17 $106.73
Fair Value Estimate $141.07 $95.24
Upside to Fair Value -4.1% -10.8%
Market Cap $363.5B $849.4B
Forward P/E โ€” โ€”
EV / EBITDA 29.6x 21.3x
Price / Sales 5.5x 1.1x
Price / FCF 22.6x 62.8x
Revenue Growth YoY +5.1% +5.9%
Gross Margin 75.4% 25.2%
Operating Margin 16.7% 4.4%
Return on Equity 6.6% 22.7%
Dividend Yield 2.31% 0.92%
FCF Yield 4.42% 1.59%
Analyst Consensus Buy Strong Buy
Investment Thesis
MRK โ€” Merck & Co., Inc.
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 higโ€ฆ
WMT โ€” Walmart Inc.
Walmart Inc. is the world's largest retailer by revenue, operating more than 10,000 stores and clubs across Walmart U.S., Walmart International, and Sam's Club, with a fast-growing e-commerce and advertising ecosystem layered on top of a grocery-led, everyday-low-price model. The business quality is high: scale and sourcing power underpin a durable cost advantage, ROE is 22.7%, and revenue grew 5โ€ฆ
Accumulation Zones
Metric MRK WMT
Zone Low $105.80 $71.43
Zone High $119.91 $80.95
In Buy Zone? No No
โ† MRK Research    WMT Research โ†’    All Research