Corcept Therapeutics (NASDAQ:CORT) and Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) are both medical companies, but which is the superior investment? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their profitability, institutional ownership, valuation, earnings, dividends, risk and analyst recommendations.
Earnings & Valuation
This table compares Corcept Therapeutics and Merck & Co., Inc.'s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.
| Gross Revenue | Price/Sales Ratio | Net Income | Earnings Per Share | Price/Earnings Ratio |
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Corcept Therapeutics | $306.49 million | 8.68 | $94.18 million | $0.77 | 29.45 |
Merck & Co., Inc. | $46.84 billion | 4.12 | $9.84 billion | $5.19 | 14.70 |
Merck & Co., Inc. has higher revenue and earnings than Corcept Therapeutics. Merck & Co., Inc. is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Corcept Therapeutics, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.
Profitability
This table compares Corcept Therapeutics and Merck & Co., Inc.'s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.
| Net Margins | Return on Equity | Return on Assets |
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Corcept Therapeutics | 30.73% | 25.38% | 23.16% |
Merck & Co., Inc. | 24.33% | 53.83% | 16.83% |
Insider & Institutional Ownership
75.4% of Corcept Therapeutics shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 72.9% of Merck & Co., Inc. shares are owned by institutional investors. 16.4% of Corcept Therapeutics shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 0.3% of Merck & Co., Inc. shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.
Risk and Volatility
Corcept Therapeutics has a beta of 1.04, indicating that its stock price is 4% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Merck & Co., Inc. has a beta of 0.43, indicating that its stock price is 57% less volatile than the S&P 500.
Analyst Recommendations
This is a breakdown of recent ratings and recommmendations for Corcept Therapeutics and Merck & Co., Inc., as reported by MarketBeat.com.
| Sell Ratings | Hold Ratings | Buy Ratings | Strong Buy Ratings | Rating Score |
---|
Corcept Therapeutics | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2.50 |
Merck & Co., Inc. | 0 | 2 | 12 | 0 | 2.86 |
Corcept Therapeutics currently has a consensus price target of $24.00, suggesting a potential upside of 5.82%. Merck & Co., Inc. has a consensus price target of $95.9167, suggesting a potential upside of 25.69%. Given Merck & Co., Inc.'s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Merck & Co., Inc. is more favorable than Corcept Therapeutics.