Merus (MRUS) Competitors

Merus (NASDAQ:MRUS) and Viatris (NASDAQ:VTRS) are both medical companies, but which is the better investment? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their dividends, community ranking, media sentiment, risk, analyst recommendations, institutional ownership, profitability, valuation and earnings.

Does the media favor MRUS or VTRS?

In the previous week, Viatris had 7 more articles in the media than Merus. MarketBeat recorded 13 mentions for Viatris and 6 mentions for Merus. Merus' average media sentiment score of 0.44 beat Viatris' score of -0.03 indicating that Merus is being referred to more favorably in the media.

Company	Very Positive	Positive	Neutral	Negative	Very Negative	Overall Sentiment
Merus	1 Very Positive mention(s)	2 Positive mention(s)	2 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Neutral
Viatris	0 Very Positive mention(s)	2 Positive mention(s)	9 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	2 Very Negative mention(s)	Neutral

Do insiders & institutionals have more ownership in MRUS or VTRS?

96.1% of Merus shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 79.9% of Viatris shares are owned by institutional investors. 4.6% of Merus shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 0.1% of Viatris shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Is MRUS or VTRS more profitable?

Viatris has a net margin of -5.87% compared to Merus' net margin of -680.61%. Viatris' return on equity of 16.46% beat Merus' return on equity.

Company	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Merus	-680.61%	-38.89%	-31.16%
Viatris	-5.87%	16.46%	7.09%

Do analysts recommend MRUS or VTRS?

Merus currently has a consensus price target of $85.31, suggesting a potential upside of 74.92%. Viatris has a consensus price target of $10.50, suggesting a potential upside of 12.90%. Given Merus' stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, research analysts clearly believe Merus is more favorable than Viatris.

Company	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Merus	0 Sell rating(s)	0 Hold rating(s)	14 Buy rating(s)	2 Strong Buy rating(s)	3.13
Viatris	2 Sell rating(s)	1 Hold rating(s)	1 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	1.75

Which has higher earnings & valuation, MRUS or VTRS?

Viatris has higher revenue and earnings than Merus. Viatris is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Merus, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Company	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Merus	$36.13M	93.25	-$154.94M	-$3.27	-14.91
Viatris	$14.74B	0.75	$54.70M	-$0.53	-17.55

Which has more volatility and risk, MRUS or VTRS?

Merus has a beta of 1.15, indicating that its stock price is 15% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Viatris has a beta of 0.92, indicating that its stock price is 8% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Does the MarketBeat Community believe in MRUS or VTRS?

Merus received 338 more outperform votes than Viatris when rated by MarketBeat users. Likewise, 67.60% of users gave Merus an outperform vote while only 34.85% of users gave Viatris an outperform vote.

Company	Underperform	Outperform
Merus	Outperform Votes 361 67.60%	Underperform Votes 173 32.40%
Viatris	Outperform Votes 23 34.85%	Underperform Votes 43 65.15%

Summary

Merus beats Viatris on 12 of the 19 factors compared between the two stocks.