Verdict: Side-by-side breakdown using the Bull Rankings model. LLY scored 77.3, NVS scored 59.8 — LLY leads.
Compare another set
Different reporting periods. LLY's fundamentals are as of June 2026, but NVS's are as of December 2025 — a 6-month gap. Growth, margin and valuation figures below therefore describe different windows and aren't strictly like-for-like.
LLY
Eli Lilly and Company
Drug Manufacturers - General · Quality-Growth
77.3
$1,179.27 · $1.1T
fundamentals as of
Score gap
17.5
LLY leads
NVS
Novartis AG
Drug Manufacturers - General · Quality-Growth
59.8
$143.75 · $273.2B
fundamentals as of
At a glance · who leads each dimension, on the model's own rules
CheapestNVS21.7x
Fastest growthLLY+49.6%
Strongest balance sheetNVS1.17
Highest qualityNVS86 / 100
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)
LLY
stronger →← stronger
NVS
79
Qualityreturns · margins · balance sheet
86
97
Growthrevenue & earnings expansion
54
60
Valuevaluation vs sector peers
46
LLY is stronger on 2 of 3 pillars.
Fundamentals, head-to-head
LLY
NVS
$13.6bA-
FCF
$17.6bA-
+49.6%A
Rev
+8.4%B
1.62C
D/E
1.17C
39.6xC+
P/E
21.7xB+
1.13B+
PEG
3.35D
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
LLY
NVS
234% above
Price vs fair valuelower is cheaper
3% above
~48%/yr
Growth the price impliesyr-1 FCF growth, fading to 4% · lower = less priced in
~5%/yr
-77%
1-yr DCF upside
-4%
-70%
5-yr DCF upside
-3%
-56%
10-yr DCF upside
-2%
These two disagree on this pair: the Value pillar ranks cheapness against sector peers, while price-vs-fair-value is an absolute read. A name can be the better value in its sector and still the dearer one on cash flows.
The DCF is a cross-check on intrinsic value, separate from the quality-growth score above.
Model signals
LLY
Why this score
Raising its dividend
Durable high returns
NVS
Why this score
Buying back stock
Raising its dividend
The companies
LLYEli Lilly and Company
Drug Manufacturers - General · $1,179.27 · beta 0.45
Why now
Drug Manufacturers - General · market cap $1.1T. 9% off the 52-week high of $1292.65. Revenue growing +50% — in hypergrowth territory. 29 sell-side analysts rate this a Buy with a mean 1-yr target of $1,330 (implying +13% upside).
Moat
Net margin 34% is exceptional — pricing-power territory rare outside premium software, branded staples, and specialty pharma. ROE 79% — top-decile capital efficiency. Either pricing leverage, low capital intensity, or aggressive buybacks; the durability story depends on which. $1.1T market cap places it among the largest companies in the sector — distribution, R&D, and customer-acquisition costs amortize across a base peers can't replicate.
Risk
Trailing P/E 40x sits well above the S&P median (~20x) — multiple compression is a real risk if revenue growth decelerates. P/S 13.2x embeds aggressive forward growth — disappointing top-line guidance would compress the multiple hard. 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.
NVSNovartis AG
Drug Manufacturers - General · $143.75 · beta 0.47
Why now
Drug Manufacturers - General · market cap $273.2b. 16% off the 52-week high of $170.46. 11 sell-side analysts rate this a Hold with a mean 1-yr target of $154.65 (implying +8% upside).
Moat
Net margin 26% sits well above the S&P median (~11%) — suggests structural pricing advantage or cost discipline competitors can't quickly close. ROE 30% — top-decile capital efficiency. Either pricing leverage, low capital intensity, or aggressive buybacks; the durability story depends on which. FCF converts 126% 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 LLY and NVS diverge
On the headline score the gap is 17.5 points in favor of LLY. They get there differently, though — each leads on a different pillar, so the better pick depends on which you weight.
GrowthLLY 97.0 · NVS 54.2LLY +42.8
ValueLLY 60.1 · NVS 45.9LLY +14.2
QualityLLY 79.2 · NVS 86.1NVS +6.9
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 LLY or NVS the better stock?
LLY scores higher: LLY 77.3, NVS 59.8 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 LLY and NVS differ most?
The widest gap is growth, where LLY leads by 43 points on the 0–100 pillar scale. Neither name sweeps: they trade the lead across the three pillars, so the comparison is a trade-off rather than one being better on every measure.
How are LLY and NVS 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.