MRK vs PAHC vs ABBV Stock Comparison

Merck, Phibro Animal Health and AbbVie Prices as of Nov 5, 2026 Peers: Industry group
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MRK Merck & Co., Inc.
$146.90 +3.5% 1M +74.1% 1Y
Market cap
$362.14B
P/E
147.8x
Revenue (TTM)
$67.38B
Div. yield
2.31%
Pharmaceuticals Healthcare
1 win
ABBV AbbVie Inc.
$288.21 +8.0% 1M +33.0% 1Y
Market cap
$509.44B
P/E
49.3x
Revenue (TTM)
$66.01B
Div. yield
2.40%
Pharmaceuticals Healthcare
8 wins

Head to Head

12 decided of 12

AbbVie leads on 8 of the 12 questions below (AbbVie 8, Phibro Animal Health 3, Merck 1). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionMRKPAHCABBVLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $362.14B $1.44B $509.44B ABBV
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 147.8x 14.0x 49.3x PAHC
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 56.5x 10.4x 21.5x PAHC
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +4.9% +10.1% +10.7% ABBV
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 3.6% 6.7% 15.7% ABBV
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital 2.9% 13.9% 24.3% ABBV
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA 3.4x 2.1x 2.4x PAHC
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 2.31% 1.36% 2.40% ABBV
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months +74.1% -14.0% +33.0% MRK
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years +12.5%/yr +9.6%/yr +19.7%/yr ABBV
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 30.0% 56.6% 25.6% ABBV
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 61/100 70/100 70/100 ABBV

Percentile Scorecard

MRKPAHCABBV

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

AxisMRKPAHCABBV
Valuation 86 #90 of 634 94 #38 of 634 91 #58 of 634
Growth 29 #431 of 608 85 #90 of 608 68 #195 of 608
Profitability 90 #59 of 557 85 #86 of 557 96 #22 of 557
Financial Health 21 #519 of 654 27 #476 of 654 15 #554 of 654
Shareholder Returns 79 #87 of 403 57 #175 of 403 79 #85 of 403
Overall 61 70 70
  • MRK ranked among 671 companies in Pharmaceuticals and Biotechnology
  • PAHC ranked among 671 companies in Pharmaceuticals and Biotechnology
  • ABBV 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

PeriodMRKPAHCABBVSPY
1 month +3.5%-3.3%+8.0% -5.9%
3 months +14.5%-0.3%+18.2% -4.6%
6 months +30.8%-18.0%+42.2% +0.2%
Year to date +39.6%-5.2%+26.1% +7.5%
1 year +74.1%-14.0%+33.0% +8.2%
3 years +40.8%+189.5%+104.1% +68.3%
3 years, per year +12.1%+42.5%+26.9% +19.0%
5 years +80.0%+58.2%+146.0% +56.5%
5 years, per year +12.5%+9.6%+19.7% +9.4%
10 years +149.7%+35.1%+414.3% +251.5%
10 years, per year +9.6%+3.1%+17.8% +13.4%

Risk

MeasureMRKPAHCABBVSPY
Volatility, 1Y 30.0%56.6%25.6% 13.6%
Downside volatility, 1Y 24.4%61.6%24.0% 14.2%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 0.180.94-0.03 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y 2.47-0.251.29 0.60
Max drawdown, 5Y -44.7%-57.9%-24.3% -25.4%
From 52-week high -6.1%-40.6%-2.3% -5.9%
52-week high $156.45$59.58$294.90 $779.14
52-week low $84.39$28.52$197.38 $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.

MultipleMRKPAHCABBV
P/E now vs peer median 147.8xmedian 17.8x 14.0xmedian 17.8x 49.3xmedian 17.8x
P/S now vs peer median 5.4xmedian 8.1x 0.9xmedian 8.1x 7.7xmedian 8.1x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 31.7xmedian 15.7x 7.7xmedian 15.7x 20.0xmedian 15.7x
P/FCF now vs peer median 24.6xmedian 21.0x 66.3xmedian 21.0x 27.0xmedian 21.0x
P/B now vs peer median 8.1xmedian 2.0x 3.4xmedian 2.0x -111.2xmedian 2.0x
PEG now vs peer median -8.11median 0.36 0.20median 0.36 2.96median 0.36

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 monthsMRKPAHCABBV
Revenue $67.38B $1.54B $66.01B
Gross profit $48.35B $521.27M $48.67B
Operating income $5.46B $192.78M $21.23B
Net income $2.45B $102.71M $10.35B
Free cash flow $14.75B $21.67M $18.87B
R&D $30.76B – $9.96B
EPS (diluted) $0.99 $2.51 $5.84
Cash & equivalents $9.55B $75.55M $10.77B
Total debt $53.78B $610.88M $80.90B
Shares (diluted) 2.48B 40.96M 1.77B
Enterprise value $325.14B $1.12B $477.50B

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
MetricMRKPAHCABBV
P/E 147.8x 14.0x 49.3x
P/FCF 24.6x 66.3x 27.0x
P/Operating cash flow 19.4x 16.8x 25.4x
P/S 5.4x 0.9x 7.7x
P/B 8.1x 3.4x -111.2x
P/Tangible book 17.7x 3.7x -8.3x
EV/EBITDA 31.7x 7.7x 20.0x
EV/EBIT 74.4x 10.2x 27.3x
EV/Revenue 6.0x 1.3x 8.8x
EV/FCF 27.6x 90.7x 30.7x
EV/Operating cash flow 21.7x 22.9x 28.9x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) -8.11 0.20 2.96

Growth

14 metrics
MetricMRKPAHCABBV
Revenue growth (1Y) 4.9% 10.1% 10.7%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) 4.3% 16.4% 6.2%
Gross profit growth (1Y) -2.5% 19.5% 17.0%
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) 3.8% 20.6% 10.3%
Operating income growth (1Y) -74.8% 33.8% 134.9%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) -11.1% 49.7% 12.1%
Net income growth (1Y) -87.1% 51.5% 331.9%
Net income CAGR (3Y) -19.1% 70.5% 16.6%
EPS growth (1Y) -87.0% 51.2% 333.1%
EPS CAGR (3Y) -18.2% 69.8% 16.6%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) 9.6% 11.6% -3.7%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) 2.9% 28.7% -7.7%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) 13.0% -36.8% -4.1%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) 3.8% 74.0% -8.6%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricMRKPAHCABBV
Gross margin 71.8% 33.8% 73.7%
EBITDA margin 19.0% 16.5% 43.9%
Operating margin 8.1% 12.5% 32.2%
Pretax margin 7.1% 9.1% 19.4%
Net margin 3.6% 6.7% 15.7%
FCF margin 21.9% 1.4% 28.6%
Operating cash flow margin 27.8% 5.6% 30.4%
Return on equity 5.6% 25.6% –
Return on assets 1.9% 6.8% 7.3%
Return on invested capital 2.9% 13.9% 24.3%
Return on capital employed 5.3% 15.9% 21.6%
Asset turnover 0.5x 1.0x 0.5x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 7.6x 0.8x 1.9x
Stock comp / revenue 1.6% 0.1% 1.4%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricMRKPAHCABBV
Debt / assets 40.5% 40.3% 54.8%
Debt / equity 1.2x 1.5x -17.7x
Net debt / EBITDA 3.4x 2.1x 2.4x
Debt / FCF 3.6x 28.2x 4.3x
Liabilities / assets 66.1% 72.4% 103.1%
Equity / assets 33.9% 27.6% -3.1%
Interest coverage – 4.2x –
Current ratio 1.4x 3.2x 0.9x
Quick ratio 0.8x 1.0x 0.6x
Cash ratio 0.3x 0.3x 0.2x
Altman Z-score 3.91 3.09 2.73

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricMRKPAHCABBV
Dividend yield 2.3% 1.4% 2.4%
Net buyback yield 0.8% – 0.3%
Shareholder yield 3.2% 1.4% 2.7%
Payout ratio (earnings) 341.6% 19.0% –
Payout ratio (FCF) 56.7% 89.9% –
Dividend growth (1Y) 3.2% 0.1% –
Dividend CAGR (3Y) 4.4% 0.0% –

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.

ConsensusMRKPAHCABBV
Forward P/E 56.5xFY2026 10.4xFY2027 21.5xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $2.60FY2026 $3.42FY2027 $13.40FY2026
EPS growth, next FY -71.0%FY2026 +6.2%FY2027 +34.0%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after +231.2% +9.6% +25.1%
Revenue, next fiscal year $69.61BFY2026 $1.53BFY2027 $69.59BFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY +7.1%FY2026 +0.6%FY2027 +13.8%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after -4.5% -0.2% -0.5%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersMRKPAHCABBV
Held by institutions 79.9% 99.1% 74.9%
Institutions holding 3,803 210 4,182
Change in shares held, QoQ +2.6% +3.0% +2.6%
Institutions buying 1,843 117 2,205
Institutions selling 1,469 75 1,507
Buyers to sellers 1.25 1.56 1.46

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.

MRKPAHCABBV
MRK 1.00 0.25 0.43
PAHC 0.25 1.00 0.13
ABBV 0.43 0.13 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, MRK, PAHC and ABBV?

AbbVie (ABBV) is the largest by market capitalisation: Merck (MRK) $362.14B, Phibro Animal Health (PAHC) $1.44B, AbbVie (ABBV) $509.44B.

Which stock is cheaper, MRK, PAHC and ABBV?

Phibro Animal Health (PAHC) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Merck (MRK) 147.8x, Phibro Animal Health (PAHC) 14.0x, AbbVie (ABBV) 49.3x). On next year's consensus earnings, Phibro Animal Health (PAHC) is cheapest (Merck (MRK) 56.5x, Phibro Animal Health (PAHC) 10.4x, AbbVie (ABBV) 21.5x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

AbbVie (ABBV) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Merck (MRK) +4.9%, Phibro Animal Health (PAHC) +10.1%, AbbVie (ABBV) +10.7%.

Which company is more profitable?

AbbVie (ABBV) has the highest net margin (Merck (MRK) 3.6%, Phibro Animal Health (PAHC) 6.7%, AbbVie (ABBV) 15.7%). On return on invested capital, AbbVie (ABBV) leads (Merck (MRK) 2.9%, Phibro Animal Health (PAHC) 13.9%, AbbVie (ABBV) 24.3%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Merck (MRK) returned the most: Merck (MRK) +74.1%, Phibro Animal Health (PAHC) -14.0%, AbbVie (ABBV) +33.0%. Over five years, AbbVie (ABBV) compounded fastest (Merck (MRK) +12.5%/yr, Phibro Animal Health (PAHC) +9.6%/yr, AbbVie (ABBV) +19.7%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which pays a higher dividend?

AbbVie (ABBV) has the highest dividend yield: Merck (MRK) 2.31%, Phibro Animal Health (PAHC) 1.36%, AbbVie (ABBV) 2.40%.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, AbbVie (ABBV) has been the steadiest (Merck (MRK) 30.0%, Phibro Animal Health (PAHC) 56.6%, AbbVie (ABBV) 25.6%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, MRK, PAHC and ABBV?

There is no single answer; it depends on what you are buying for. On the 12 head-to-head measures on this page, AbbVie (ABBV) leads on 8. 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.