Merck & Co., Inc. vs NOVO NORDISK A/S, two Drug Manufacturers stocks. A side-by-side on valuation, growth, margins, returns, and what each price is betting.
Merck is an oncology kingdom with a patent-cliff calendar, Keytruda's franchise carrying a 13.6% net margin through the late-cycle spending that succession requires; Novo Nordisk is a metabolic-disease machine at 33.1% net whose cliff is competitive rather than legal. The market prices the legal cliff kindlier: 36.2 times earnings for Merck against 14.2 for Novo, a 22-turn spread running directly against the margin evidence. Novo's returns triple Merck's on equity, 52.8% against 19.4%, without Merck's full turn of debt. Merck pays the bigger dividend, 2.6%; free-cash yields sit close at 4-4.5%. Fear of GLP-1 competition, it turns out, is priced more harshly than the certainty of patent expiry.
Comparison updated 2026-07-10.
| Metric | MRK | NVO |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $128.37 | $48.01 |
| Market cap | $317.3B | $213.3B |
| Sector | Drug Manufacturers | Drug Manufacturers |
| Stage | Mature | Growth |
| P/E | 36.2 | 14.2 |
| P/B | 6.91 | 7.47 |
| P/S | 4.83 | 4.69 |
| EV/EBITDA | 621.5 | 10.0 |
| Revenue growth | +2.9% | +22.1% |
| Gross margin | — | 81.0% |
| Operating margin | — | 41.3% |
| Net margin | 13.6% | 33.1% |
| Return on equity | 19.4% | 52.8% |
| Return on assets | 6.9% | 18.9% |
| Return on invested capital | — | 51.6% |
| FCF yield | 4.5% | 4.1% |
| Dividend yield | 2.6% | — |
| Debt / equity | 1.07 | 0.00 |
| Current ratio | 1.30 | 0.80 |
| Altman Z (solvency) | 7.31 | 4.25 |
| Piotroski F (quality) | 6 / 9 | 4 / 9 |
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The stronger value is highlighted per metric where one is strictly better on that single number; it is not an overall verdict on either company. For informational and research purposes only. Not investment advice. Not a recommendation to buy, sell, or hold any security. boothcheck is not a registered investment adviser. Past performance does not guarantee future results.