Develops and sells prescription medicines and vaccines, with revenue concentrated in oncology.
Merck (MRK) scores 5.0 out of 10 as of , computed from its reported financial statements. That reads as mixed quality. The reading rests on growth, and profitability is what holds it back.
One pillar, solvency, is unscored because the filings behind it carry too little to judge. It is shown as a dash rather than a zero, and the overall score is the weighted average of what could be scored.
Data provided by Twelve Data. Scores are computed by Lemma Analysis from reported financials.
We cannot judge Merck yet, because fewer than five years had both a return on capital and a cost of capital we could measure. This is not a “no”.
Quantitative signs of a moat, read from the filed statements. This is not a judgement of where it comes from (brand, network effects, switching costs). How Lemma measures a moat →
Concentration is the story: a single oncology franchise supplies much of the profit and faces a known exclusivity date. Profitability scores well today, while growth and predictability carry the question about what follows. This is a score best read alongside the pipeline rather than on its own.
Merck (MRK) has a Lemma Quality Score of 5.0 out of 10 as of October 19, 2026, which reads as mixed quality. A mixed reading means the strengths and weaknesses roughly cancel out, and the case for the business depends on which pillars you care about most. Five pillars feed it, and every one of them is computed from what the company reported rather than from its share price.
Ranked with the 212 Healthcare companies Lemma publishes, the score sits at the 59th percentile, in the better half of its peers. For reference, the middle of the group scores 4.4 and a company needs 6.0 to reach its top quarter, which leaves Merck above the median.
On profitability, Merck scores 4.6, an average reading. Its peers have a median of 2.7 across 210 Healthcare companies, which places it well above them, at the 66th percentile. Profitability in the middle of the range is neither a moat nor a warning: margins and returns look like those of an ordinary business in this line of work.
There is no solvency score for Merck: too little of the pillar could be measured from the filings to give an honest reading. The overall is therefore the weighted average of the other pillars. Across 150 Healthcare companies the median for this pillar is 6.5. Without it the overall says nothing about how comfortably the company carries its debt.
On growth, Merck scores 5.7, an average reading. Its peers have a median of 4.9 across 107 Healthcare companies, which places it above them, at the 60th percentile. Growth near the median is neither a reason to buy nor a concern, but it does mean the quality case rests more on the other pillars.
Merck’s efficiency score is 5.0 out of 10 (average). Against a median of 6.0 among 200 Healthcare companies, that is below the group and the 30th percentile. An average efficiency reading suggests the business turns its assets and earnings into cash at roughly the rate its sector does.
Merck’s predictability score is 5.0 out of 10 (average). Against a median of 3.4 among 207 Healthcare companies, that is well above the group and the 67th percentile. Middling predictability suggests some volatility in the record, enough to read the other pillars with a little caution.
Merck’s pillars sit close together: growth is the strongest at 5.7 and profitability the weakest at 4.6, a spread of only 1.1 points. A profile this even means the overall is a fair summary of the business. A growth lead says the business is expanding faster than it is doing anything else well, which is worth checking against predictability. A profitability shortfall is the one most worth understanding, since it bears directly on whether the business creates value.
Of everything that could lift Merck’s score, efficiency matters most. Bringing it up to the 6.0 median of Healthcare companies would take the overall from 5.0 to roughly 5.2. Only four of the five pillars could be scored. Together they carry 80 of the 100 weight points (the full set is profitability 25, solvency 20, growth 20, efficiency 15, predictability 20), and the overall is the weighted average of those alone.
These are the Healthcare companies closest to Merck in market value. Each has its own page scored on the same five pillars, so the comparison is like for like.
How much profit the company generates from its capital and sales.
The company’s ability to service debt and meet its obligations.
How fast revenue, earnings and cash flow are compounding.
How well assets and earnings convert into cash and output.
How stable and consistent results have been over time.
Each metric is scored from 0 to 10 against sector-aware benchmarks, where higher is better. Metrics roll up into five pillars, and the pillars combine into the overall score using the weights shown. Sector-sensitive metrics are judged relative to peers in the same sector.
This score is a systematic, backward-looking read of reported fundamentals. It does not judge valuation, management quality, competitive moat, or future prospects, and can be distorted by one-off items or unusual accounting. Treat it as a starting point, not a recommendation.
Educational only. Not investment advice.
On this reading Merck scores 5.0 out of 10, which reads as mixed quality. Its strongest pillar is growth, its weakest is profitability. Quality is not the same as a good investment: the score says nothing about the price you would pay.
Merck ranks at the 59th percentile of the 212 Healthcare companies Lemma publishes a score for. The median there is 4.4 and the top quarter starts at 6.0, against Merck’s 5.0.
Five pillars, each scored from 0 to 10 against sector-aware benchmarks and then weighted into one overall reading: profitability, solvency, growth, efficiency and predictability. Everything comes from reported financials, and nothing comes from price, sentiment or forecasts.
This page last changed on October 19, 2026. The score moves with the financial statements, so the page changes when a new filing moves the reading rather than on a schedule. Live figures for MRK are in the app.
No. Quality and valuation are separate questions, and a good business at the wrong price is still a bad purchase. Score the business here, then price it with a DCF you control.
Inside Lemma Analysis the same five pillars run on every company we cover, with the metrics behind each one, current fundamentals, a DCF you control and a watchlist that tells you when the price catches up.
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