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Side-by-side financial comparison of IBM (IBM) and Merck & Co. (MRK). Click either name above to swap in a different company.
Merck & Co. is the larger business by last-quarter revenue ($16.4B vs $15.9B, roughly 1.0× IBM). Merck & Co. runs the higher net margin — 18.1% vs 7.6%, a 10.4% gap on every dollar of revenue. On growth, IBM posted the faster year-over-year revenue change (9.5% vs 5.0%). IBM produced more free cash flow last quarter ($2.2B vs $1.8B). Over the past eight quarters, Merck & Co.'s revenue compounded faster (2.0% CAGR vs 0.5%).
International Business Machines Corporation, doing business as IBM, is an American multinational technology company headquartered in Armonk, New York, and present in over 175 countries. It is a publicly traded company and one of the 30 companies in the Dow Jones Industrial Average. IBM is the largest industrial research organization in the world, with 19 research facilities across a dozen countries; for 29 consecutive years, from 1993 to 2021, it held the record for most annual U.S.
Merck & Co., Inc. is an American multinational pharmaceutical company headquartered in Rahway, New Jersey. The company does business as Merck Sharp & Dohme or MSD outside the United States and Canada. The company is ranked fourth on the list of largest biomedical companies by revenue.
IBM vs MRK — Head-to-Head
Income Statement — Q1 FY2026 vs Q4 FY2025
| Metric | | |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $15.9B | $16.4B |
| Net Profit | $1.2B | $3.0B |
| Gross Margin | 56.2% | 66.2% |
| Operating Margin | — | 20.9% |
| Net Margin | 7.6% | 18.1% |
| Revenue YoY | 9.5% | 5.0% |
| Net Profit YoY | 15.3% | -20.8% |
| EPS (diluted) | $1.28 | $1.19 |
Green = leading value per metric. Periods may differ when fiscal calendars don't align.
8-Quarter Revenue & Profit Trend
Side-by-side quarterly history. Quarters aligned by calendar period so offset fiscal years line up.
| Q1 26 | $15.9B | — | ||
| Q4 25 | $19.7B | $16.4B | ||
| Q3 25 | $16.3B | $17.3B | ||
| Q2 25 | $17.0B | $15.8B | ||
| Q1 25 | $14.5B | $15.5B | ||
| Q4 24 | $17.6B | $15.6B | ||
| Q3 24 | $15.0B | $16.7B | ||
| Q2 24 | $15.8B | $16.1B |
| Q1 26 | $1.2B | — | ||
| Q4 25 | $5.6B | $3.0B | ||
| Q3 25 | $1.7B | $5.8B | ||
| Q2 25 | $2.2B | $4.4B | ||
| Q1 25 | $1.1B | $5.1B | ||
| Q4 24 | $2.9B | $3.7B | ||
| Q3 24 | $-330.0M | $3.2B | ||
| Q2 24 | $1.8B | $5.5B |
| Q1 26 | 56.2% | — | ||
| Q4 25 | 60.6% | 66.2% | ||
| Q3 25 | 57.3% | 77.7% | ||
| Q2 25 | 58.8% | 77.5% | ||
| Q1 25 | 55.2% | 78.0% | ||
| Q4 24 | 59.5% | 75.5% | ||
| Q3 24 | 56.3% | 75.5% | ||
| Q2 24 | 56.8% | 76.8% |
| Q1 26 | — | — | ||
| Q4 25 | 21.0% | 20.9% | ||
| Q3 25 | 14.9% | 39.0% | ||
| Q2 25 | 15.3% | 31.6% | ||
| Q1 25 | 8.0% | 38.0% | ||
| Q4 24 | 18.8% | 26.7% | ||
| Q3 24 | -5.4% | 24.6% | ||
| Q2 24 | 14.1% | 37.3% |
| Q1 26 | 7.6% | — | ||
| Q4 25 | 28.4% | 18.1% | ||
| Q3 25 | 10.7% | 33.5% | ||
| Q2 25 | 12.9% | 28.0% | ||
| Q1 25 | 7.3% | 32.7% | ||
| Q4 24 | 16.6% | 24.0% | ||
| Q3 24 | -2.2% | 19.0% | ||
| Q2 24 | 11.6% | 33.9% |
| Q1 26 | $1.28 | — | ||
| Q4 25 | $5.90 | $1.19 | ||
| Q3 25 | $1.84 | $2.32 | ||
| Q2 25 | $2.31 | $1.76 | ||
| Q1 25 | $1.12 | $2.01 | ||
| Q4 24 | $3.11 | $1.49 | ||
| Q3 24 | $-0.36 | $1.24 | ||
| Q2 24 | $1.96 | $2.14 |
Balance Sheet & Financial Strength
Snapshot of each company's liquidity, leverage and book value from the latest quarter.
| Metric | | |
|---|---|---|
| Cash + ST InvestmentsLiquidity on hand | $10.8B | $14.6B |
| Total DebtLower is stronger | $66.4B | — |
| Stockholders' EquityBook value | $33.1B | $52.6B |
| Total Assets | $156.2B | $136.9B |
| Debt / EquityLower = less leverage | 2.01× | — |
8-quarter trend — quarters aligned by calendar period.
| Q1 26 | $10.8B | — | ||
| Q4 25 | $13.6B | $14.6B | ||
| Q3 25 | $11.6B | $18.2B | ||
| Q2 25 | $11.9B | $8.6B | ||
| Q1 25 | $11.0B | $9.2B | ||
| Q4 24 | $13.9B | $13.7B | ||
| Q3 24 | $13.2B | $14.6B | ||
| Q2 24 | $12.2B | $11.4B |
| Q1 26 | $66.4B | — | ||
| Q4 25 | $54.8B | — | ||
| Q3 25 | $55.2B | — | ||
| Q2 25 | $55.2B | — | ||
| Q1 25 | $56.4B | — | ||
| Q4 24 | $49.9B | — | ||
| Q3 24 | $53.0B | — | ||
| Q2 24 | $52.9B | — |
| Q1 26 | $33.1B | — | ||
| Q4 25 | $32.6B | $52.6B | ||
| Q3 25 | $27.9B | $51.9B | ||
| Q2 25 | $27.5B | $49.0B | ||
| Q1 25 | $26.9B | $48.3B | ||
| Q4 24 | $27.3B | $46.3B | ||
| Q3 24 | $24.4B | $44.5B | ||
| Q2 24 | $24.0B | $43.6B |
| Q1 26 | $156.2B | — | ||
| Q4 25 | $151.9B | $136.9B | ||
| Q3 25 | $146.3B | $129.5B | ||
| Q2 25 | $148.6B | $117.5B | ||
| Q1 25 | $145.7B | $115.1B | ||
| Q4 24 | $137.2B | $117.1B | ||
| Q3 24 | $134.3B | $117.5B | ||
| Q2 24 | $133.8B | $112.6B |
| Q1 26 | 2.01× | — | ||
| Q4 25 | 1.68× | — | ||
| Q3 25 | 1.98× | — | ||
| Q2 25 | 2.01× | — | ||
| Q1 25 | 2.10× | — | ||
| Q4 24 | 1.83× | — | ||
| Q3 24 | 2.17× | — | ||
| Q2 24 | 2.20× | — |
Cash Flow & Capital Efficiency
How much cash each business actually produces after reinvestment. Cash flow is harder to manipulate than net income.
| Metric | | |
|---|---|---|
| Operating Cash FlowLast quarter | $5.2B | $2.9B |
| Free Cash FlowOCF − Capex | $2.2B | $1.8B |
| FCF MarginFCF / Revenue | 13.9% | 11.1% |
| Capex IntensityCapex / Revenue | 2.4% | 6.3% |
| Cash ConversionOCF / Net Profit | 4.25× | 0.96× |
| TTM Free Cash FlowTrailing 4 quarters | $10.2B | $12.4B |
8-quarter trend — quarters aligned by calendar period.
| Q1 26 | $5.2B | — | ||
| Q4 25 | $4.0B | $2.9B | ||
| Q3 25 | $3.1B | $7.8B | ||
| Q2 25 | $1.7B | $3.3B | ||
| Q1 25 | $4.4B | $2.5B | ||
| Q4 24 | $4.3B | $3.5B | ||
| Q3 24 | $2.9B | $9.3B | ||
| Q2 24 | $2.1B | $5.6B |
| Q1 26 | $2.2B | — | ||
| Q4 25 | $3.7B | $1.8B | ||
| Q3 25 | $2.8B | $6.8B | ||
| Q2 25 | $1.5B | $2.5B | ||
| Q1 25 | $4.1B | $1.2B | ||
| Q4 24 | $4.0B | $2.5B | ||
| Q3 24 | $2.6B | $8.5B | ||
| Q2 24 | $1.8B | $4.8B |
| Q1 26 | 13.9% | — | ||
| Q4 25 | 18.6% | 11.1% | ||
| Q3 25 | 17.3% | 39.6% | ||
| Q2 25 | 8.8% | 16.0% | ||
| Q1 25 | 28.4% | 7.5% | ||
| Q4 24 | 22.9% | 16.1% | ||
| Q3 24 | 17.3% | 51.1% | ||
| Q2 24 | 11.7% | 30.1% |
| Q1 26 | 2.4% | — | ||
| Q4 25 | 1.9% | 6.3% | ||
| Q3 25 | 1.6% | 5.7% | ||
| Q2 25 | 1.2% | 4.8% | ||
| Q1 25 | 1.7% | 8.6% | ||
| Q4 24 | 1.7% | 6.0% | ||
| Q3 24 | 1.9% | 4.7% | ||
| Q2 24 | 1.4% | 4.9% |
| Q1 26 | 4.25× | — | ||
| Q4 25 | 0.72× | 0.96× | ||
| Q3 25 | 1.77× | 1.35× | ||
| Q2 25 | 0.78× | 0.74× | ||
| Q1 25 | 4.14× | 0.49× | ||
| Q4 24 | 1.49× | 0.92× | ||
| Q3 24 | — | 2.94× | ||
| Q2 24 | 1.13× | 1.03× |
Financial Flow Comparison
Revenue → gross profit → operating profit → net profit for each company.
Revenue Breakdown by Segment
IBM
| Software | $7.1B | 44% |
| Consulting | $5.3B | 33% |
| Infrastructure | $3.3B | 21% |
| Financing | $220.0M | 1% |
MRK
| Pharmaceuticalsegment | $8.7B | 53% |
| Keytruda | $4.9B | 30% |
| Other | $2.7B | 16% |
| Janumet | $57.0M | 0% |
| Isentress Isentress HD | $38.0M | 0% |
| Pifeltro | $25.0M | 0% |
| Belsomra | $23.0M | 0% |
| Dificid | $17.0M | 0% |
| Delstrigo | $14.0M | 0% |
| Lagevrio | $12.0M | 0% |
| Pneumovax23 | $4.0M | 0% |
