MRK
Merck & Co., Inc.
MRK's outlook is improving despite an expensive valuation.
UNH
UnitedHealth Group Incorporated
UNH has the edge over MRK overall, supported by stronger modeled upside and stronger valuation.
MRK Fundamentals
| Metric | Status |
|---|---|
| Stable | |
| Stable | |
| Strong | |
| Weak |
MRK's cash flow is currently strong, and its revenue and profitability are stable, but its balance sheet is weak.
UNH Fundamentals
| Metric | Status |
|---|---|
| Stable | |
| Stable | |
| Healthy | |
| Healthy |
UNH's cash flow and balance sheet are currently healthy, and its revenue and profitability are stable.
MRK PE Valuation
| Level | PE | Price | Vs current |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cheap | 15x | $14.38 | -90% |
| Forward | 17x | $147 | — |
| Fair | 21x | $20.03 | -86% |
| Expensive | 58x | $55.80 | -62% |
| Current | 151x | $147 | — |
Historical ranges are pointers, not guarantees.
MRK's PE is in its expensive range at 151x. If earnings grow as analysts expect, today's price would be 17x next year's earnings, in its cheap range.
UNH PE Valuation
| Level | PE | Price | Vs current |
|---|---|---|---|
| Forward | 18x | $405 | — |
| Cheap | 19x | $325 | -20% |
| Fair | 23x | $410 | +1.2% |
| Current | 23x | $405 | — |
| Expensive | 30x | $526 | +30% |
Historical ranges are pointers, not guarantees.
UNH has the edge over MRK in the historical PE scenario, which offers more potential upside but is not a forecast.
MRK Forward outlook
| Metric | Outlook |
|---|---|
| Strongly improving | |
| Strong growth | |
| Stable | |
| Strongly improving | |
| Limited | |
| Moderate |
Analysts expect MRK's earnings to grow and its profitability to improve, with its revenue holding steady.
UNH Forward outlook
| Metric | Outlook |
|---|---|
| Strongly improving | |
| Strong growth | |
| Stable | |
| Improving | |
| Moderate | |
| Low |
Analysts expect UNH's earnings to grow and its profitability to improve, with its revenue holding steady. However, they disagree widely on these estimates.
MRK Earnings Per Share
| Quarter | TTM EPS | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Forward | $8.42 | +768% |
| Q3 2026 | $0.97 | -87% |
| Q2 2026 | $1.25 | -81% |
| Q1 2026 | $3.55 | -48% |
| Q4 2025 | $7.28 | +8% |
| Q3 2025 | $7.58 | +59% |
| Q2 2025 | $6.50 | +21% |
| Q1 2025 | $6.88 | +664% |
| Q4 2024 | $6.74 | +4714% |
MRK has the edge over UNH on earnings, with more consistent year-over-year improvement.
UNH Earnings Per Share
| Quarter | TTM EPS | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Forward | $22.65 | +29% |
| Q3 2026 | $17.55 | -8.5% |
| Q2 2026 | $15.58 | -33% |
| Q1 2026 | $13.28 | -44% |
| Q4 2025 | $13.23 | -15% |
| Q3 2025 | $19.17 | +25% |
| Q2 2025 | $23.09 | +53% |
| Q1 2025 | $23.89 | +46% |
| Q4 2024 | $15.51 | -35% |
UNH's earnings per share have fallen from their peak: $17.55 over the past year, against $23.89 in early 2025.
MRK Quarterly Revenue
| Quarter | Revenue | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $18.1B | +4.7% |
| Q2 2026 | $16.6B | +5.1% |
| Q1 2026 | $16.3B | +4.9% |
| Q4 2025 | $16.4B | +5% |
| Q3 2025 | $17.3B | +3.7% |
| Q2 2025 | $15.8B | -1.9% |
| Q1 2025 | $15.5B | -1.6% |
| Q4 2024 | $15.6B | +6.8% |
MRK's revenue has grown year over year for five quarters in a row: $18.1B last quarter, up 4.7% from the same quarter a year ago.
| Quarter | Margin | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | 31% | -8.3 points |
| Q2 2026 | -4.1% | -36 points |
| Q1 2026 | -22% | -60 points |
| Q4 2025 | 21% | -5.8 points |
| Q3 2025 | 39% | +15 points |
| Q2 2025 | 32% | -5.7 points |
| Q1 2025 | 38% | +2.1 points |
| Q4 2024 | 27% | +41 points |
MRK has the edge over UNH on profitability, with a higher operating margin.
UNH Quarterly Revenue
| Quarter | Revenue | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $112.7B | -0.4% |
| Q2 2026 | $112B | +0.4% |
| Q1 2026 | $111.7B | +2% |
| Q4 2025 | $113.2B | +12% |
| Q3 2025 | $113.2B | +12% |
| Q2 2025 | $111.6B | +13% |
| Q1 2025 | $109.6B | +9.8% |
| Q4 2024 | $100.8B | +6.8% |
UNH has the edge over MRK on sales, with more consistent year-over-year improvement.
| Quarter | Margin | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | 5.8% | +2 points |
| Q2 2026 | 7.1% | +2.5 points |
| Q1 2026 | 8.1% | -0.3 points |
| Q4 2025 | 0.3% | -7.4 points |
| Q3 2025 | 3.8% | -4.8 points |
| Q2 2025 | 4.6% | -3.4 points |
| Q1 2025 | 8.3% | +0.4 points |
| Q4 2024 | 7.7% | -0.4 points |
UNH's operating margin was 5.8% last quarter, up 2 points from the same quarter a year ago.
MRK Free Cash Flow
| Quarter | Free cash flow | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $5.5B | -19% |
| Q2 2026 | $4.5B | +77% |
| Q1 2026 | $2.9B | +150% |
| Q4 2025 | $1.8B | -27% |
| Q3 2025 | $6.8B | -20% |
| Q2 2025 | $2.5B | -48% |
| Q1 2025 | $1.2B | -47% |
| Q4 2024 | $2.5B | +$3.3B |
MRK generated $14.7B in free cash flow over the past year, up 13% from the year before.
UNH Free Cash Flow
| Quarter | Free cash flow | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $4.3B | -16% |
| Q2 2026 | $10.3B | +63% |
| Q1 2026 | $8.1B | +79% |
| Q4 2025 | $160M | -89% |
| Q3 2025 | $5.1B | -61% |
| Q2 2025 | $6.3B | +6.9% |
| Q1 2025 | $4.6B | +1037% |
| Q4 2024 | $1.5B | +$7.6B |
UNH has the edge over MRK on cash flow, with more consistent year-over-year improvement.
MRK Total Shares
| Period | Change % | Net change |
|---|---|---|
| Quarterly | +0.3% | +8M shares |
| 1 year | -0.8% | -20M shares |
| 3 years | -2.7% | -68M shares |
| 5 years | -2.3% | -58M shares |
| Available history | -8.4% | -226M shares |
MRK has the edge over UNH on shareholder dilution, with a more favorable share count trend.
| Quarter | Spent |
|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $653M |
| Q2 2026 | $757M |
| Q1 2026 | $874M |
| Q4 2025 | $1.3B |
| Q3 2025 | $1.3B |
| Q2 2025 | $1.3B |
| Q1 2025 | $1.2B |
| Q4 2024 | $489M |
MRK spent $3.5B buying back its own shares over the past year, down 18% from the year before.
UNH Total Shares
| Period | Change % | Net change |
|---|---|---|
| Quarterly | -0.4% | -4M shares |
| 1 year | -0.7% | -6M shares |
| 3 years | -3.6% | -34M shares |
| 5 years | -5.5% | -53M shares |
| Available history | -6.6% | -64M shares |
UNH has 902M diluted shares, down 0.7% from a year ago, with $5B in buybacks over the past year.
| Quarter | Spent |
|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $3.4B |
| Q2 2026 | $1.6B |
| Q1 2026 | — |
| Q4 2025 | — |
| Q3 2025 | — |
| Q2 2025 | $2.5B |
| Q1 2025 | $3B |
| Q4 2024 | $5B |
UNH spent $5B buying back its own shares over the past year, down 52% from the year before.
MRK Net Leverage
| Quarter | Net Leverage | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | 5.4x | High |
| Q2 2026 | 5.1x | High |
| Q1 2026 | 3.0x | Moderate |
| Q4 2025 | 1.4x | Healthy |
| Q3 2025 | 1.0x | Very low |
| Q2 2025 | 1.3x | Healthy |
| Q1 2025 | 1.2x | Healthy |
| Q4 2024 | 1.1x | Healthy |
MRK's net debt is about 5.4 years of its operating earnings (EBITDA), up from a year a year ago.
UNH Net Leverage
| Quarter | Net Leverage | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | 1.7x | Healthy |
| Q2 2026 | 1.7x | Healthy |
| Q1 2026 | 2.2x | Moderate |
| Q4 2025 | 2.3x | Moderate |
| Q3 2025 | 1.7x | Healthy |
| Q2 2025 | 1.5x | Healthy |
| Q1 2025 | 1.3x | Healthy |
| Q4 2024 | 1.4x | Healthy |
UNH has the edge over MRK on leverage, with a lower net debt burden relative to earnings.
MRK Weekly Momentum
| Metric | Value | Status |
|---|---|---|
| RSI | 61.5 | Neutral |
| Stochastic | 69.3 | Neutral |
MRK's weekly RSI is 61 (neutral) and its Stochastic is 69 (neutral).
UNH Weekly Momentum
| Metric | Value | Status |
|---|---|---|
| RSI | 56.4 | Neutral |
| Stochastic | 60.0 | Neutral |
UNH's weekly RSI is 56 (neutral) and its Stochastic is 60 (neutral).
MRK PE vs Healthcare Sector
| Metric | MRK | Sector median | Relative |
|---|---|---|---|
| PE | 151x | 26x | 486% above |
| PE % | 98 | 29 | 69 pts above |
MRK is trading at 151x earnings, a 486% premium to the Healthcare sector's median of 26x.
UNH PE vs Healthcare Sector
| Metric | UNH | Sector median | Relative |
|---|---|---|---|
| PE | 23x | 26x | 11% below |
| PE % | 47 | 29 | 18 pts above |
UNH has the edge over MRK on valuation relative to its sector.
MRK Weekly Moving Averages
| Moving average | MA price | Relative |
|---|---|---|
| 8 week MA | $146.6 | 0.2% above |
| 20 week MA | $141.1 | 4.2% above |
| 50 week MA | $125.2 | 17% above |
| 100 week MA | $105.9 | 39% above |
| 200 week MA | $109.8 | 34% above |
MRK has the edge over UNH on trend strength, trading above more of its moving averages.
UNH Weekly Moving Averages
| Moving average | MA price | Relative |
|---|---|---|
| 8 week MA | $394.2 | 2.8% above |
| 20 week MA | $400.5 | 1.2% above |
| 50 week MA | $361.2 | 12% above |
| 100 week MA | $376.0 | 7.8% above |
| 200 week MA | $446.6 | 9.3% below |
UNH has bounced recently, but its long-term trend is still down: it's above its 8-, 20-, 50- and 100-week averages, but 9.3% below its 200-week average.
MRK Yearly ROI
| Year | Start price | End price | ROI |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | $87.3 | $76.4 | -12% |
| 2021 | $76.4 | $75.7 | -0.9% |
| 2022 | $75.7 | $111.9 | +48% |
| 2023 | $111.9 | $109.0 | -2.5% |
| 2024 | $109.0 | $99.7 | -8.5% |
| 2025 | $99.7 | $106.8 | +7.1% |
| 2026 YTD | $106.8 | $147.0 | +38% |
MRK has the edge over UNH on returns for 2026, with the stronger performance.
UNH Yearly ROI
| Year | Start price | End price | ROI |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | $296.0 | $340.8 | +15% |
| 2021 | $340.8 | $495.4 | +45% |
| 2022 | $495.4 | $531.3 | +7.3% |
| 2023 | $531.3 | $526.5 | -0.9% |
| 2024 | $526.5 | $510.0 | -3.1% |
| 2025 | $510.0 | $331.8 | -35% |
| 2026 YTD | $331.8 | $405.1 | +22% |
UNH has finished three years in a row lower, and it's up 22% so far in 2026.