TAK vs MRK vs JNJ Stock Comparison

Takeda Pharmaceutical, Merck and Johnson & Johnson 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
1 win
JNJ Johnson & Johnson
$275.17 +2.8% 1M +47.5% 1Y
Market cap
$660.04B
P/E
41.0x
Revenue (TTM)
$99.34B
Div. yield
0.02%
Pharmaceuticals Healthcare
10 wins

Head to Head

11 decided of 12

Johnson & Johnson leads on 10 of the 12 questions below (Johnson & Johnson 10, Merck 1). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionTAKMRKJNJLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $65.88B $370.60B $660.04B JNJ
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 208.7x 151.1x 41.0x JNJ
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 50.1x 59.0x 25.7x JNJ
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months -35.4% +4.9% +7.8% JNJ
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 1.1% — 16.2% JNJ
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital 0.0% — 17.6% JNJ
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA 4.8x — 0.8x JNJ
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.00% 0.00% 0.02% –
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months +45.5% +69.0% +47.5% MRK
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years +7.4%/yr +10.7%/yr +11.1%/yr JNJ
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 21.4% 29.8% 20.9% JNJ
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 60/100 61/100 68/100 JNJ

Percentile Scorecard

TAKMRKJNJ

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

AxisTAKMRKJNJ
Valuation 97 #22 of 624 91 #60 of 624 86 #88 of 624
Growth 12 #531 of 601 21 #478 of 601 42 #351 of 601
Profitability 86 #77 of 541 – 93 #37 of 541
Financial Health 32 #438 of 647 – 41 #380 of 647
Shareholder Returns 74 #93 of 359 71 #104 of 359 76 #88 of 359
Overall 60 61 68
  • TAK ranked among 671 companies in Pharmaceuticals and Biotechnology
  • MRK ranked among 671 companies in Pharmaceuticals and Biotechnology
  • JNJ 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

PeriodTAKMRKJNJSPY
1 month +8.2%-2.0%+2.8% +0.7%
3 months +16.1%+12.8%+7.5% +3.7%
6 months +20.1%+34.0%+19.7% +7.1%
Year to date +28.5%+39.0%+33.0% +12.8%
1 year +45.5%+69.0%+47.5% +11.9%
3 years +50.0%+42.5%+87.2% +85.2%
3 years, per year +14.5%+12.5%+23.3% +22.8%
5 years +42.9%+66.2%+68.9% +67.6%
5 years, per year +7.4%+10.7%+11.1% +10.9%
10 years -12.9%+148.7%+138.6% +262.0%
10 years, per year -1.4%+9.5%+9.1% +13.7%

Risk

MeasureTAKMRKJNJSPY
Volatility, 1Y 21.4%29.8%20.9% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 20.0%24.6%20.1% 12.6%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 0.110.11-0.22 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y 2.132.322.28 0.94
Max drawdown, 5Y -26.4%-44.7%-23.6% -25.4%
From 52-week high -1.9%-6.5%-1.2% -1.2%
52-week high $20.43$156.45$278.47 $779.14
52-week low $13.23$82.49$186.00 $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.

MultipleTAKMRKJNJ
P/E now vs peer median 200.0xmedian 17.8x 147.4xmedian 17.8x 41.2xmedian 17.8x
P/S now vs peer median 2.1xmedian 9.1x 5.4xmedian 9.1x 6.7xmedian 9.1x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 16.5xmedian 15.0x —median 15.0x 20.7xmedian 15.0x
P/FCF now vs peer median 14.0xmedian 21.7x 22.9xmedian 21.7x 32.2xmedian 21.7x
P/B now vs peer median 1.4xmedian 2.2x —median 2.2x 8.1xmedian 2.2x
PEG now vs peer median -3.44median 0.35 -8.13median 0.35 -1.92median 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 monthsTAKMRKJNJ
Revenue $30.00B $67.38B $99.34B
Gross profit $19.76B – $67.11B
Operating income $1.13B – $25.19B
Net income $244.16M – $16.10B
Free cash flow $4.55B – $20.59B
R&D $4.51B $30.76B $16.08B
EPS (diluted) $0.10 $0.99 $6.57
Cash & equivalents $2.66B – $16.91B
Total debt $31.49B – $44.65B
Shares (diluted) 3.15B 2.47B 2.45B
Enterprise value $44.10B $370.60B $579.90B

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
MetricTAKMRKJNJ
P/E 200.0x 147.4x 41.2x
P/FCF 14.0x 22.9x 32.2x
P/Operating cash flow 11.4x – 25.3x
P/S 2.1x 5.4x 6.7x
P/B 1.4x – 8.1x
P/Tangible book 2.4x – 19.0x
EV/EBITDA 16.5x – 20.7x
EV/EBIT 79.5x – 27.4x
EV/Revenue 3.0x 5.4x 6.9x
EV/FCF 19.8x – 33.5x
EV/Operating cash flow 16.0x – 26.4x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) -3.44 -8.13 -1.92

Growth

14 metrics
MetricTAKMRKJNJ
Revenue growth (1Y) -35.4% 4.9% 7.8%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) -13.1% 4.3% 5.9%
Gross profit growth (1Y) -36.3% – 7.0%
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) -13.3% – 5.1%
Operating income growth (1Y) -76.7% – 7.4%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) -43.6% – 1.4%
Net income growth (1Y) -6.2% – -35.9%
Net income CAGR (3Y) -44.1% – -22.5%
EPS growth (1Y) -86.9% -87.0% -36.4%
EPS CAGR (3Y) -58.1% -18.1% -21.5%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) -30.2% – 8.1%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) -6.9% – 12.4%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) -31.3% – 5.1%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) -8.4% – 14.5%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricTAKMRKJNJ
Gross margin 65.9% – 67.6%
EBITDA margin 18.2% – 33.5%
Operating margin 3.8% – 25.4%
Pretax margin 0.3% – 17.9%
Net margin 1.1% – 16.2%
FCF margin 15.2% – 20.7%
Operating cash flow margin 18.7% – 26.3%
Return on equity 0.7% – 19.3%
Return on assets 0.3% – 8.1%
Return on invested capital 0.0% – 17.6%
Return on capital employed 1.2% – 17.5%
Asset turnover 0.3x – 0.5x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 23.0x – 1.6x
Stock comp / revenue 1.6% – 1.4%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricTAKMRKJNJ
Debt / assets 32.5% – 22.6%
Debt / equity 0.7x – 0.5x
Net debt / EBITDA 4.8x – 0.8x
Debt / FCF 6.9x – 2.2x
Liabilities / assets 51.4% – 58.7%
Equity / assets 48.6% – 41.3%
Interest coverage 0.6x – 25.6x
Current ratio 3.1x – 1.0x
Quick ratio 1.8x – 0.7x
Cash ratio 0.9x – 0.3x
Altman Z-score 1.35 – 5.55

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricTAKMRKJNJ
Dividend yield 1.5% 2.3% 1.9%
Net buyback yield 1.0% – 0.6%
Shareholder yield 2.6% 2.3% 2.5%
Payout ratio (earnings) – – 79.0%
Payout ratio (FCF) – – 61.8%
Dividend growth (1Y) – – 3.9%
Dividend CAGR (3Y) – – 1.0%

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.

ConsensusTAKMRKJNJ
Forward P/E 50.1xFY2026 59.0xFY2026 25.7xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $0.40FY2026 $2.48FY2026 $10.72FY2026
EPS growth, next FY +5.3%FY2026 -72.4%FY2026 -0.6%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after +62.5% +257.3% +5.9%
Revenue, next fiscal year $28.27BFY2026 $69.45BFY2026 $106.54BFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY -0.8%FY2026 +6.8%FY2026 +13.1%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after +11.9% -3.8% +7.0%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersTAKMRKJNJ
Held by institutions 3.3% 79.9% 74.7%
Institutions holding 379 3,798 4,692
Change in shares held, QoQ +6.2% +2.6% +1.8%
Institutions buying 213 1,843 2,294
Institutions selling 98 1,465 1,896
Buyers to sellers 2.17 1.26 1.21

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.

TAKMRKJNJ
TAK 1.00 0.41 0.47
MRK 0.41 1.00 0.48
JNJ 0.47 0.48 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, TAK, MRK and JNJ?

Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) is the largest by market capitalisation: Takeda Pharmaceutical (TAK) $65.88B, Merck (MRK) $370.60B, Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) $660.04B.

Which stock is cheaper, TAK, MRK and JNJ?

Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Takeda Pharmaceutical (TAK) 208.7x, Merck (MRK) 151.1x, Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) 41.0x). On next year's consensus earnings, Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) is cheapest (Takeda Pharmaceutical (TAK) 50.1x, Merck (MRK) 59.0x, Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) 25.7x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Takeda Pharmaceutical (TAK) -35.4%, Merck (MRK) +4.9%, Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) +7.8%.

Which company is more profitable?

Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) has the highest net margin (Takeda Pharmaceutical (TAK) 1.1%, Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) 16.2%). On return on invested capital, Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) leads (Takeda Pharmaceutical (TAK) 0.0%, Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) 17.6%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Merck (MRK) returned the most: Takeda Pharmaceutical (TAK) +45.5%, Merck (MRK) +69.0%, Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) +47.5%. Over five years, Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) compounded fastest (Takeda Pharmaceutical (TAK) +7.4%/yr, Merck (MRK) +10.7%/yr, Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) +11.1%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which pays a higher dividend?

Only one of these companies pays a dividend: Takeda Pharmaceutical (TAK) 0.00%, Merck (MRK) 0.00%, Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) 0.02%. Takeda Pharmaceutical (TAK) and Merck (MRK) pays no regular dividend.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) has been the steadiest (Takeda Pharmaceutical (TAK) 21.4%, Merck (MRK) 29.8%, Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) 20.9%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, TAK, MRK and JNJ?

There is no single answer; it depends on what you are buying for. On the 12 head-to-head measures on this page, Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) leads on 10. 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.