Verdict: Side-by-side breakdown using the Bull Rankings model. JNJ scored 47.0, NBIX scored 87.2 — NBIX leads.
Compare another set
JNJ
Johnson & Johnson
Drug Manufacturers - General · Quality-Growth
47
$261.44 · $630.0B
fundamentals as of
Score gap
40.2
NBIX leads
NBIX
Neurocrine Biosciences, Inc.
Drug Manufacturers - Specialty & Generic · Quality-Growth
87.2
$142.44 · $14.5B
fundamentals as of
At a glance · who leads each dimension, on the model's own rules
CheapestNBIX20.9x
Fastest growthNBIX+34.4%
Strongest balance sheetNBIX0.12
Highest qualityNBIX80 / 100
Largest discount to fair valueNBIX-24%
Side by side · every name on one set of axes
Growth against the P/E multiple. Up and to the right is cheaper and faster — the quality-growth idea in one picture. Points beyond the axis are pinned to the edge and marked off-scale rather than allowed to compress everything else.
The model, pillar by pillar (0–100 each)
JNJ
stronger →← stronger
NBIX
80
Qualityreturns · margins · balance sheet
80
54
Growthrevenue & earnings expansion
96
24
Valuevaluation vs sector peers
86
NBIX is stronger on 3 of 3 pillars.
Fundamentals, head-to-head
JNJ
NBIX
$22.2bA
FCF
$870mC+
+6.0%C+
Rev
+34.4%A
0.58B
D/E
0.12B+
30.3xB
P/E
20.9xB+
2.69C
PEG
0.28A
Winner per row is the stronger grade; where grades tie, the better figure breaks it. A true tie or a missing value shows no highlight.
Valuation · DCF cross-check
JNJ
NBIX
82% above
Price vs fair valuelower is cheaper
24% below
~20%/yr
Growth the price impliesyr-1 FCF growth, fading to 4% · lower = less priced in
~7%/yr
-47%
1-yr DCF upside
+5%
-45%
5-yr DCF upside
+32%
-43%
10-yr DCF upside
+85%
The DCF is a cross-check on intrinsic value, separate from the quality-growth score above.
Model signals
JNJ
Why this score
Durable high returns
NBIX
Why this score
Durable high returns
Diluting shareholders
The companies
JNJJohnson & Johnson
Drug Manufacturers - General · $261.44 · beta 0.21
Why now
Drug Manufacturers - General · market cap $630.0b. 7% off the 52-week high of $281.07. 22 sell-side analysts rate this a Buy with a mean 1-yr target of $279.82 (implying +7% upside).
Moat
Net margin 21% sits well above the S&P median (~11%) — suggests structural pricing advantage or cost discipline competitors can't quickly close. ROE 26% — top-decile capital efficiency. Either pricing leverage, low capital intensity, or aggressive buybacks; the durability story depends on which. FCF converts 106% of net income — earnings translate cleanly into cash.
Risk
Trailing P/E 30x sits well above the S&P median (~20x) — multiple compression is a real risk if revenue growth decelerates. Trial-readout binary — late-stage clinical trials carry approve/reject outcomes that swing valuation 30%+; the equity is effectively a portfolio of these binary events, not a steady cash-flow business.
Drug Manufacturers - Specialty & Generic · market cap $14.5b. Down 23% from 52-week high of $186.12 — deep drawdown territory. Revenue growing +34% — in hypergrowth territory. PEG 0.28 — paying under fair value for the growth rate. 29 sell-side analysts rate this a Strong Buy with a mean 1-yr target of $207.29 (implying +46% upside).
Moat
Net margin 21% sits well above the S&P median (~11%) — suggests structural pricing advantage or cost discipline competitors can't quickly close. ROE 19% is above 15% — the equity base is compounding at a rate the market struggles to discount accurately. FCF converts 123% of net income — earnings translate cleanly into cash.
Risk
Trial-readout binary — late-stage clinical trials carry approve/reject outcomes that swing valuation 30%+; the equity is effectively a portfolio of these binary events, not a steady cash-flow business.
Verdict — model-derived comparison
Generating verdict… typically 5–10 seconds
Not investment advice. The Bull Rankings publishes a quantitative ranking model and accompanying analysis for general informational purposes only. Nothing on this page is a recommendation to buy, sell, or hold any security; nothing is personalized to your circumstances, risk tolerance, or tax situation. Investing carries the risk of loss — invest at your own risk and consider consulting a licensed financial professional before acting on anything you read here. See terms and methodology for full disclosures.
Where JNJ and NBIX diverge
On the headline score the gap is 40.2 points in favor of NBIX. The widest single difference is Value, where NBIX leads by 62.1 points.
ValueJNJ 23.9 · NBIX 86.0NBIX +62.1
GrowthJNJ 54.2 · NBIX 95.9NBIX +41.7
QualityJNJ 79.9 · NBIX 80.5level
Pillars run 0–100. Value is judged against each company's own sector, so a Value score is a statement about a company relative to its own industry rather than to the other name here. A wide Value gap usually means the market already prices the difference in quality or growth — which is the trade-off this comparison comes down to.
Common questions
Is NBIX or JNJ the better stock?
NBIX scores higher: NBIX 87.2, JNJ 47.0 out of 100 on the Bull Rankings quality-growth score, which blends business quality, growth and valuation into one number. A higher score means a stronger business at a more reasonable price — it is not a price target or a recommendation.
Where do NBIX and JNJ differ most?
The widest gap is value, where NBIX leads by 62 points on the 0–100 pillar scale. NBIX also leads growth, while quality is effectively level between them.
How are NBIX and JNJ scored?
Each carries the same 0–100 quality-growth score used everywhere on the site, built from three pillars — quality (profitability and returns on capital), growth (revenue and earnings), and value (what you pay for them) — combined as a geometric mean, so a weak pillar cannot be papered over by a strong one.
How current is this comparison?
The whole universe is re-scored every trading day after the US market close, so the scores and fundamentals here reflect the latest published edition.