IDXX vs MRK vs ELAN Stock Comparison

Idexx Laboratories, Merck and Elanco Animal Health Prices as of Oct 29, 2026 Peers: Industry group
MRK Merck & Co., Inc.
$146.34 -2.0% 1M +69.0% 1Y
Market cap
$370.60B
P/E
151.1x
Revenue (TTM)
$67.38B
Div. yield
–
Pharmaceuticals Healthcare
4 wins

Head to Head

11 decided of 12

Idexx Laboratories leads on 6 of the 12 questions below (Idexx Laboratories 6, Merck 4, Elanco Animal Health 1). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionIDXXMRKELANLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $43.52B $370.60B $11.51B MRK
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 38.2x 151.1x -57.9x IDXX
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 36.9x 59.0x 21.3x ELAN
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +12.8% +4.9% +12.0% IDXX
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 25.0% — -4.0% IDXX
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital 45.6% — 6.1% IDXX
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA 0.5x — 2.5x IDXX
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% –
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months -8.2% +69.0% +2.9% MRK
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years -2.9%/yr +10.7%/yr -6.7%/yr MRK
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 32.1% 29.8% 42.3% MRK
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 77/100 61/100 66/100 IDXX

Percentile Scorecard

IDXXMRKELAN

Each axis is the mean percentile of its metrics against the company's industry group. 100 is the best in the group, 50 the middle.

Scores by Axis

AxisIDXXMRKELAN
Valuation 75 #155 of 624 91 #60 of 624 94 #39 of 624
Growth 76 #148 of 601 21 #478 of 601 56 #265 of 601
Profitability 97 #17 of 541 – 84 #89 of 541
Financial Health 46 #350 of 647 – 32 #441 of 647
Shareholder Returns 93 #26 of 359 71 #104 of 359 –
Overall 77 61 66
  • IDXX ranked among 671 companies in Pharmaceuticals and Biotechnology
  • MRK ranked among 671 companies in Pharmaceuticals and Biotechnology
  • ELAN ranked among 671 companies in Pharmaceuticals and Biotechnology

Price Performance

Price return, split-adjusted, before dividends. Click a name to hide or show it.

Returns

PeriodIDXXMRKELANSPY
1 month +8.0%-2.0%+2.8% +0.7%
3 months +3.1%+12.8%-12.2% +3.7%
6 months +2.7%+34.0%+3.9% +7.1%
Year to date -14.9%+39.0%+2.7% +12.8%
1 year -8.2%+69.0%+2.9% +11.9%
3 years +45.3%+42.5%+163.8% +85.2%
3 years, per year +13.3%+12.5%+38.2% +22.8%
5 years -13.5%+66.2%-29.3% +67.6%
5 years, per year -2.9%+10.7%-6.7% +10.9%
10 years +448.3%+148.7%— +262.0%
10 years, per year +18.6%+9.5%— +13.7%

Risk

MeasureIDXXMRKELANSPY
Volatility, 1Y 32.1%29.8%42.3% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 31.3%24.6%42.8% 12.6%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 0.790.111.29 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y -0.262.320.07 0.94
Max drawdown, 5Y -51.3%-44.7%-76.3% -25.4%
From 52-week high -24.9%-6.5%-13.4% -1.2%
52-week high $766.68$156.45$26.84 $779.14
52-week low $504.70$82.49$19.80 $631.97

Valuation History

Weekly multiples on trailing twelve-month fundamentals. Negative or extreme readings (a loss year, a collapsed denominator) are left out so the chart stays readable.

MultipleIDXXMRKELAN
P/E now vs peer median 39.9xmedian 17.8x 147.4xmedian 17.8x -58.3xmedian 17.8x
P/S now vs peer median 10.0xmedian 9.1x 5.4xmedian 9.1x 2.3xmedian 9.1x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 28.6xmedian 15.0x —median 15.0x 11.3xmedian 15.0x
P/FCF now vs peer median 36.2xmedian 21.7x 22.9xmedian 21.7x 30.6xmedian 21.7x
P/B now vs peer median 28.2xmedian 2.2x —median 2.2x 1.8xmedian 2.2x
PEG now vs peer median 2.64median 0.35 -8.13median 0.35 2.96median 0.35

Financial History

Reported figures by fiscal period, placed on the calendar year (or quarter) each period ended in, so companies with different fiscal years line up.

Trailing twelve monthsIDXXMRKELAN
Revenue $4.55B $67.38B $5.02B
Gross profit $2.84B – $2.78B
Operating income $1.46B – $637.00M
Net income $1.14B – -$199.00M
Free cash flow $1.25B – $379.00M
R&D $261.47M $30.76B $371.00M
EPS (diluted) $14.37 $0.99 $-0.39
Cash & equivalents $196.93M – $530.00M
Total debt $968.86M – $3.92B
Shares (diluted) 79.31M 2.47B 505.90M
Enterprise value $42.73B $370.60B $9.50B

All Metrics

58 metrics · best in bold

Bold marks the best reading: the lowest positive value for multiples, leverage and payout, the highest for everything else. The bar under each value is its percentile against that company's own peers. Hover a value for its rank and the peer median.

Valuation

12 metrics
MetricIDXXMRKELAN
P/E 39.9x 147.4x -58.3x
P/FCF 36.2x 22.9x 30.6x
P/Operating cash flow 33.1x – 18.8x
P/S 10.0x 5.4x 2.3x
P/B 28.2x – 1.8x
P/Tangible book 30.0x – 3.4x
EV/EBITDA 28.6x – 11.3x
EV/EBIT 31.7x – 23.5x
EV/Revenue 10.1x 5.4x 3.0x
EV/FCF 36.8x – 39.6x
EV/Operating cash flow 33.7x – 24.3x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) 2.64 -8.13 2.96

Growth

14 metrics
MetricIDXXMRKELAN
Revenue growth (1Y) 12.8% 4.9% 12.0%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) 9.0% 4.3% 5.1%
Gross profit growth (1Y) 14.4% – 13.2%
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) 10.5% – 3.9%
Operating income growth (1Y) 16.2% – 22.0%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) 11.7% – 59.8%
Net income growth (1Y) 15.6% – -145.9%
Net income CAGR (3Y) 12.9% – -20.8%
EPS growth (1Y) 18.1% -87.0% -145.3%
EPS CAGR (3Y) 15.1% -18.1% -19.7%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) 51.4% – 7.9%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) 22.5% – 73.6%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) 59.9% – 5.0%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) 28.4% – 101.8%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricIDXXMRKELAN
Gross margin 62.4% – 55.4%
EBITDA margin 35.4% – 26.5%
Operating margin 32.0% – 12.7%
Pretax margin 31.3% – -3.3%
Net margin 25.0% – -4.0%
FCF margin 27.5% – 7.5%
Operating cash flow margin 30.1% – 12.3%
Return on equity 71.9% – -3.0%
Return on assets 33.4% – -1.5%
Return on invested capital 45.6% – 6.1%
Return on capital employed 68.6% – 5.5%
Asset turnover 1.3x – 0.4x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 1.2x – -3.1x
Stock comp / revenue 1.4% – 1.5%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricIDXXMRKELAN
Debt / assets 28.1% – 28.9%
Debt / equity 0.6x – 0.6x
Net debt / EBITDA 0.5x – 2.5x
Debt / FCF 0.8x – 10.3x
Liabilities / assets 53.2% – 51.4%
Equity / assets 46.8% – 48.6%
Interest coverage 38.6x – 2.6x
Current ratio 1.2x – 2.1x
Quick ratio 0.7x – 0.9x
Cash ratio 0.2x – 0.3x
Altman Z-score 20.55 – 1.48

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricIDXXMRKELAN
Dividend yield – 2.3% –
Net buyback yield 2.3% – –
Shareholder yield 2.3% 2.3% –
Payout ratio (earnings) – – –
Payout ratio (FCF) – – –
Dividend growth (1Y) – – –
Dividend CAGR (3Y) – – –

Analyst Estimates

Solid lines are reported fiscal-year results; dashed lines are the consensus for the years ahead. Hover a year for the analysts' high and low, and how each result compared with its estimate.

ConsensusIDXXMRKELAN
Forward P/E 36.9xFY2026 59.0xFY2026 21.3xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $15.63FY2026 $2.48FY2026 $1.09FY2026
EPS growth, next FY +19.5%FY2026 -72.4%FY2026 +16.0%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after +12.9% +257.3% +23.9%
Revenue, next fiscal year $5.00BFY2026 $69.45BFY2026 $4.79BFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY +16.3%FY2026 +6.8%FY2026 +1.6%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after +0.6% -3.8% +19.7%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersIDXXMRKELAN
Held by institutions 93.6% 79.9% 100.0%
Institutions holding 1,290 3,798 524
Change in shares held, QoQ +4.1% +2.6% +4.4%
Institutions buying 588 1,843 246
Institutions selling 496 1,465 210
Buyers to sellers 1.19 1.26 1.17

Return Correlation

Daily returns, last 12 months

1.00 means two stocks move in lockstep, 0 that they move independently. Pairs below about 0.5 diversify each other.

IDXXMRKELAN
IDXX 1.00 0.19 0.42
MRK 0.19 1.00 0.22
ELAN 0.42 0.22 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, IDXX, MRK and ELAN?

Merck (MRK) is the largest by market capitalisation: Idexx Laboratories (IDXX) $43.52B, Merck (MRK) $370.60B, Elanco Animal Health (ELAN) $11.51B.

Which stock is cheaper, IDXX, MRK and ELAN?

Idexx Laboratories (IDXX) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Idexx Laboratories (IDXX) 38.2x, Merck (MRK) 151.1x, Elanco Animal Health (ELAN) -57.9x). On next year's consensus earnings, Elanco Animal Health (ELAN) is cheapest (Idexx Laboratories (IDXX) 36.9x, Merck (MRK) 59.0x, Elanco Animal Health (ELAN) 21.3x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

Idexx Laboratories (IDXX) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Idexx Laboratories (IDXX) +12.8%, Merck (MRK) +4.9%, Elanco Animal Health (ELAN) +12.0%.

Which company is more profitable?

Idexx Laboratories (IDXX) has the highest net margin (Idexx Laboratories (IDXX) 25.0%, Elanco Animal Health (ELAN) -4.0%). On return on invested capital, Idexx Laboratories (IDXX) leads (Idexx Laboratories (IDXX) 45.6%, Elanco Animal Health (ELAN) 6.1%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Merck (MRK) returned the most: Idexx Laboratories (IDXX) -8.2%, Merck (MRK) +69.0%, Elanco Animal Health (ELAN) +2.9%. Over five years, Merck (MRK) compounded fastest (Idexx Laboratories (IDXX) -2.9%/yr, Merck (MRK) +10.7%/yr, Elanco Animal Health (ELAN) -6.7%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Merck (MRK) has been the steadiest (Idexx Laboratories (IDXX) 32.1%, Merck (MRK) 29.8%, Elanco Animal Health (ELAN) 42.3%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, IDXX, MRK and ELAN?

There is no single answer; it depends on what you are buying for. On the 12 head-to-head measures on this page, Idexx Laboratories (IDXX) leads on 6. Business Quant does not give investment advice; use the comparison as a starting point for your own research.

Data from SEC filings, exchange prices and consensus estimates, via Business Quant. Percentile scores compare each company with its own peer group, so two companies' scores are each relative to different peers unless you rank against the whole market. Price returns exclude dividends. Nothing on this page is investment advice.