Verdict: Side-by-side breakdown using the Bull Rankings model. MRK scored 33.5, KNSA scored 67.1 — KNSA leads.
Compare another set
Different reporting periods. MRK's fundamentals are as of June 2026, but KNSA's are as of March 2026 — a 3-month gap. Growth, margin and valuation figures below therefore describe different windows and aren't strictly like-for-like.
MRK
Merck & Co., Inc.
Drug Manufacturers - General · Quality-Growth
33.5
$145.60 · $359.2B
fundamentals as of
Score gap
33.6
KNSA leads
KNSA
Kiniksa Pharmaceuticals International, plc
Drug Manufacturers - Specialty & Generic · Quality-Growth
67.1
$79.78 · $6.2B
fundamentals as of
At a glance · who leads each dimension, on the model's own rules
CheapestKNSA79.8x
Fastest growthKNSA+56.7%
Strongest balance sheetKNSA0.01
Highest qualityKNSA64 / 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)
MRK
stronger →← stronger
KNSA
62
Qualityreturns · margins · balance sheet
64
35
Growthrevenue & earnings expansion
99
17
Valuevaluation vs sector peers
48
KNSA is stronger on 3 of 3 pillars.
Fundamentals, head-to-head
MRK
KNSA
$16.1bA-
FCF
$164mC
+1.3%C
Rev
+56.7%A
1.28C
D/E
0.01A-
115.6xD
P/E
79.8xD
2.60C
PEG
2.03C
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
MRK
KNSA
57% above
Price vs fair valuelower is cheaper
63% above
~14%/yr
Growth the price impliesyr-1 FCF growth, fading to 4% · lower = less priced in
~28%/yr
-35%
1-yr DCF upside
-53%
-36%
5-yr DCF upside
-39%
-39%
10-yr DCF upside
-10%
The DCF is a cross-check on intrinsic value, separate from the quality-growth score above.
Model signals
MRK
Why this score
Durable high returns
KNSA
Why this score
Diluting shareholders
The companies
MRKMerck & Co., Inc.
Drug Manufacturers - General · $145.60 · beta 0.22
Why now
Drug Manufacturers - General · market cap $359.2b. 7% off the 52-week high of $156.92. 25 sell-side analysts rate this a Buy with a mean 1-yr target of $158.28 (implying +9% upside).
Moat
Free cash flow runs well ahead of reported net income, mostly because of depreciation and amortization ($6.7b) — non-cash charges that hold down reported earnings while cash generation stays strong. $359.2b 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. Pharma moat is patent runway + pipeline depth — a single approved molecule funds the next generation of bets. Late-stage trials carry binary readouts that swing valuation 30%+.
Risk
Trailing P/E 115.6x prices in sustained high growth — any quarter that disappoints triggers sharp re-rating. Net margin 4.8% is thin — operating leverage cuts both ways; input-cost inflation or pricing pressure hits the bottom line first. ROE 7% is below the long-run sustainable threshold of ~10% — capital efficiency would need to improve for the equity base to compound at the market rate.
Drug Manufacturers - Specialty & Generic · market cap $6.2b. 4% off the 52-week high of $82.94. Revenue growing +57% — in hypergrowth territory. 8 sell-side analysts rate this a Strong Buy with a mean 1-yr target of $98.00 (implying +23% upside).
Moat
ROE 12% meets the long-run market sustainable threshold — solid but not differentiated; the durability comes from elsewhere. Free cash flow runs well ahead of reported net income. Pharma moat is patent runway + pipeline depth — a single approved molecule funds the next generation of bets. Late-stage trials carry binary readouts that swing valuation 30%+.
Risk
Trailing P/E 79.8x prices in sustained high growth — any quarter that disappoints triggers sharp re-rating. 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 MRK and KNSA diverge
On the headline score the gap is 33.6 points in favor of KNSA. The widest single difference is Growth, where KNSA leads by 64.2 points.
GrowthMRK 34.8 · KNSA 99.0KNSA +64.2
ValueMRK 17.4 · KNSA 47.8KNSA +30.4
QualityMRK 62.0 · KNSA 64.0level
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 KNSA or MRK the better stock?
KNSA scores higher: KNSA 67.1, MRK 33.5 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 KNSA and MRK differ most?
The widest gap is growth, where KNSA leads by 64 points on the 0–100 pillar scale. KNSA also leads value, while quality is effectively level between them.
How are KNSA and MRK 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.