MRNA vs VRTX vs ARGX Stock Comparison

Moderna, Vertex Pharmaceuticals and Argenx Se Prices as of Oct 26, 2026 Peers: Industry group
MRNA Moderna, Inc.
$198.85 0.0% 1M +643.6% 1Y
Market cap
$83.02B
P/E
–
Revenue (TTM)
$2.23B
Div. yield
–
Biotechnology Healthcare
1 win
ARGX Argenx Se
$869.33 -9.4% 1M +6.4% 1Y
Market cap
$54.07B
P/E
28.8x
Revenue (TTM)
$5.82B
Div. yield
–
Biotechnology Healthcare
4 wins

Head to Head

9 decided of 12

Vertex Pharmaceuticals leads on 4 of the 12 questions below (Vertex Pharmaceuticals 4, Argenx Se 4, Moderna 1). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionMRNAVRTXARGXLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $83.02B $132.25B $54.07B VRTX
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only -26.3x 30.0x 28.8x ARGX
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS — 28.4x 28.4x VRTX
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months -27.6% +10.2% +61.5% ARGX
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months -141.4% 35.0% 32.3% VRTX
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital -43.3% — — –
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA 1.5x — — –
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% –
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months +643.6% +22.8% +6.4% MRNA
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years -10.2%/yr +23.4%/yr +25.5%/yr ARGX
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 131.0% 29.0% 37.0% VRTX
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 57/100 76/100 92/100 ARGX

Percentile Scorecard

MRNAVRTXARGX

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

AxisMRNAVRTXARGX
Valuation 69 #194 of 626 80 #124 of 626 83 #108 of 626
Growth 18 #495 of 604 60 #245 of 604 95 #34 of 604
Profitability 57 #242 of 555 95 #31 of 555 98 #11 of 555
Financial Health 55 #299 of 658 53 #308 of 658 –
Shareholder Returns 85 #56 of 368 93 #27 of 368 –
Overall 57 76 92
  • MRNA ranked among 673 companies in Pharmaceuticals and Biotechnology
  • VRTX ranked among 673 companies in Pharmaceuticals and Biotechnology
  • ARGX ranked among 673 companies in Pharmaceuticals and Biotechnology

Price Performance

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

Returns

PeriodMRNAVRTXARGXSPY
1 month 0.0%-1.7%-9.4% -0.8%
3 months +257.5%+8.0%-2.2% +3.5%
6 months +308.3%+21.5%+10.9% +7.0%
Year to date +574.3%+14.1%+3.4% +12.2%
1 year +643.6%+22.8%+6.4% +13.0%
3 years +176.5%+45.7%+89.0% +86.3%
3 years, per year +40.4%+13.4%+23.7% +23.1%
5 years -41.7%+186.0%+210.9% +68.6%
5 years, per year -10.2%+23.4%+25.5% +11.0%
10 years —+557.5%— +258.0%
10 years, per year —+20.7%— +13.6%

Risk

MeasureMRNAVRTXARGXSPY
Volatility, 1Y 131.0%29.0%37.0% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 79.5%25.8%34.6% 12.7%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 2.140.490.39 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y 4.910.790.17 1.02
Max drawdown, 5Y -93.9%-29.1%-38.2% -25.4%
From 52-week high -19.1%-7.3%-17.9% -1.8%
52-week high $245.81$557.96$1,058.90 $779.14
52-week low $22.36$409.47$663.93 $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.

MultipleMRNAVRTXARGX
P/E now vs peer median -25.1xmedian 17.1x 29.8xmedian 17.1x 28.4xmedian 17.1x
P/S now vs peer median 35.6xmedian 8.8x 10.4xmedian 8.8x 9.2xmedian 8.8x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median -24.3xmedian 17.1x 24.7xmedian 17.1x —median 17.1x
P/FCF now vs peer median -63.8xmedian 18.0x 34.5xmedian 18.0x —median 18.0x
P/B now vs peer median 11.7xmedian 2.1x 6.5xmedian 2.1x —median 2.1x
PEG now vs peer median 0.39median 0.31 2.94median 0.31 0.27median 0.31

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 monthsMRNAVRTXARGX
Revenue $2.23B $12.59B $5.82B
Gross profit $521.00M $10.82B $5.24B
Operating income -$3.32B $4.78B $1.74B
Net income -$3.15B $4.41B $1.88B
Free cash flow -$1.24B $3.80B –
R&D $2.88B $3.91B $1.80B
EPS (diluted) $-7.92 $17.26 $28.43
Cash & equivalents $1.72B $6.14B –
Total debt $591.00M – –
Shares (diluted) 398.00M 255.20M 66.03M
Enterprise value $62.37B $104.25B $54.07B

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
MetricMRNAVRTXARGX
P/E -25.1x 29.8x 28.4x
P/FCF -63.8x 34.5x –
P/Operating cash flow -73.9x 30.5x –
P/S 35.6x 10.4x 9.2x
P/B 11.7x 6.5x –
P/Tangible book 11.7x 6.6x –
EV/EBITDA -24.3x 24.7x –
EV/EBIT -22.5x 25.8x 30.9x
EV/Revenue 33.6x 9.8x 9.2x
EV/FCF -60.1x 32.5x –
EV/Operating cash flow -69.7x 28.7x –
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) 0.39 2.94 0.27

Growth

14 metrics
MetricMRNAVRTXARGX
Revenue growth (1Y) -27.6% 10.2% 61.5%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) -40.6% 9.8% 80.5%
Gross profit growth (1Y) -67.8% 10.1% 62.2%
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) -56.0% 9.0% 80.0%
Operating income growth (1Y) -1.4% 21.8% 120.6%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) -103.9% 6.4% 85.1%
Net income growth (1Y) -8.5% 21.1% 22.5%
Net income CAGR (3Y) -66.4% 9.4% 115.5%
EPS growth (1Y) -5.8% 22.9% 20.9%
EPS CAGR (3Y) -65.1% 10.1% 104.8%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) 60.2% 11.6% –
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) -68.1% 1.8% –
Free cash flow growth (1Y) 64.4% 8.5% –
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) -18.2% -0.7% –

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricMRNAVRTXARGX
Gross margin 23.4% 86.0% 90.0%
EBITDA margin -138.2% 39.7% –
Operating margin -149.0% 38.0% 29.9%
Pretax margin -138.6% 41.9% 32.6%
Net margin -141.4% 35.0% 32.3%
FCF margin -55.8% 30.2% –
Operating cash flow margin -48.2% 34.1% –
Return on equity -44.5% 22.2% –
Return on assets -28.1% 16.3% –
Return on invested capital -43.3% – –
Return on capital employed -38.2% 20.8% –
Asset turnover 0.2x 0.5x –
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 0.3x 1.0x –
Stock comp / revenue 20.7% 5.5% –

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricMRNAVRTXARGX
Debt / assets 5.4% – –
Debt / equity 0.1x – –
Net debt / EBITDA 1.5x – –
Debt / FCF -0.5x – –
Liabilities / assets 38.3% 26.2% –
Equity / assets 61.7% 73.8% –
Interest coverage – – 10,120x
Current ratio 2.3x 3.2x –
Quick ratio 2.0x 2.5x –
Cash ratio 2.0x 2.0x –
Altman Z-score 11.55 13.17 –

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricMRNAVRTXARGX
Dividend yield – – –
Net buyback yield -0.1% 1.4% –
Shareholder yield -0.1% 1.4% –
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.

ConsensusMRNAVRTXARGX
Forward P/E – 28.4xFY2026 28.4xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $-8.02FY2026 $18.24FY2026 $30.63FY2026
EPS growth, next FY – -0.9%FY2026 +56.5%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after – +23.0% +26.9%
Revenue, next fiscal year $2.04BFY2026 $12.67BFY2026 $6.08BFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY +5.1%FY2026 +5.8%FY2026 +43.1%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after +26.8% +18.8% +22.9%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersMRNAVRTXARGX
Held by institutions 80.2% 95.1% 46.1%
Institutions holding 784 1,745 504
Change in shares held, QoQ +3.4% +3.9% -2.0%
Institutions buying 402 902 264
Institutions selling 238 605 160
Buyers to sellers 1.69 1.49 1.65

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.

MRNAVRTXARGX
MRNA 1.00 0.34 0.17
VRTX 0.34 1.00 0.35
ARGX 0.17 0.35 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, MRNA, VRTX and ARGX?

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (VRTX) is the largest by market capitalisation: Moderna (MRNA) $83.02B, Vertex Pharmaceuticals (VRTX) $132.25B, Argenx Se (ARGX) $54.07B.

Which stock is cheaper, MRNA, VRTX and ARGX?

Argenx Se (ARGX) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Moderna (MRNA) -26.3x, Vertex Pharmaceuticals (VRTX) 30.0x, Argenx Se (ARGX) 28.8x). On next year's consensus earnings, Vertex Pharmaceuticals (VRTX) is cheapest (Vertex Pharmaceuticals (VRTX) 28.4x, Argenx Se (ARGX) 28.4x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

Argenx Se (ARGX) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Moderna (MRNA) -27.6%, Vertex Pharmaceuticals (VRTX) +10.2%, Argenx Se (ARGX) +61.5%.

Which company is more profitable?

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (VRTX) has the highest net margin (Moderna (MRNA) -141.4%, Vertex Pharmaceuticals (VRTX) 35.0%, Argenx Se (ARGX) 32.3%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Moderna (MRNA) returned the most: Moderna (MRNA) +643.6%, Vertex Pharmaceuticals (VRTX) +22.8%, Argenx Se (ARGX) +6.4%. Over five years, Argenx Se (ARGX) compounded fastest (Moderna (MRNA) -10.2%/yr, Vertex Pharmaceuticals (VRTX) +23.4%/yr, Argenx Se (ARGX) +25.5%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Vertex Pharmaceuticals (VRTX) has been the steadiest (Moderna (MRNA) 131.0%, Vertex Pharmaceuticals (VRTX) 29.0%, Argenx Se (ARGX) 37.0%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, MRNA, VRTX and ARGX?

There is no single answer; it depends on what you are buying for. On the 12 head-to-head measures on this page, Vertex Pharmaceuticals (VRTX) leads on 4. 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.