Best pharma stocks in 2026: ranked by real data
Every listed company in the Medicine, pharma & life science value chain (53 stocks), mechanically ranked by actual market data. No opinions, no January listicle. Re-ranked every trading day.
As of October 9, 2026, the strongest pharma stock this year is Moderna (MRNA, +568.0% YTD), while Eli Lilly leads on size at $1.1T. Unlike a listicle written in January, this page re-ranks itself every trading day from real market data.
Screen all 53 life science stocks →
Top 10 by return this year
Share price change since the last close of last year. Dividends are not included.
| # | Company | YTD return | 1Y return | Market cap |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | ModernaMRNABiotech & innovation | +568.0% | +605.6% | $88.6B |
| 2 | IlluminaILMNLife science tools | +101.7% | +170.6% | $40.7B |
| 3 | NateraNTRADiagnostics | +70.6% | +127.1% | $57.6B |
| 4 | RevvityRVTYLife science tools | +57.3% | +65.8% | $17.2B |
| 5 | Charles River LaboratoriesCRLCDMO & pharma manufacturing | +49.4% | +71.8% | $14.5B |
| 6 | Merck & Co.MRKBig pharma | +35.3% | +64.8% | $352B |
| 7 | Quest DiagnosticsDGXDiagnostics | +33.0% | +27.6% | $25.4B |
| 8 | West Pharmaceutical ServicesWSTCDMO & pharma manufacturing | +32.0% | +35.6% | $26.6B |
| 9 | DexComDXCMDiabetes & metabolic disease | +27.2% | +24.5% | $31.9B |
| 10 | AmgenAMGNBiotech & innovation | +26.2% | +39.8% | $220B |
Data as of 2026-10-09 · updates daily after U.S. close
The 10 largest by market cap
The heavyweights of the pharma chain.
| # | Company | Market cap | Today | P/E |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Eli LillyLLYDiabetes & metabolic disease | $1.1T | +0.8% | 40.9 |
| 2 | Johnson & JohnsonJNJBig pharma | $626B | +1.9% | 29.8 |
| 3 | AbbVieABBVBig pharma | $481B | +1.5% | 76.3 |
| 4 | Merck & Co.MRKBig pharma | $352B | +2.3% | 111.0 |
| 5 | UnitedHealthUNHDistribution & pharmacy infrastructure | $344B | +2.3% | 24.4 |
| 6 | Thermo Fisher ScientificTMOLife science tools | $243B | +0.9% | 34.9 |
| 7 | AmgenAMGNBiotech & innovation | $220B | +1.8% | 25.2 |
| 8 | Gilead SciencesGILDBiotech & innovation | $186B | +2.8% | — |
| 9 | Abbott LaboratoriesABTDiagnostics | $172B | +1.1% | 31.8 |
| 10 | PfizerPFEBig pharma | $160B | +1.7% | 36.9 |
Lowest valuation (P/E)
Lowest positive trailing P/E; companies with negative earnings are left out. Cheap can be cheap for a reason; see each profile for the risks.
| # | Company | P/E | P/S | Market cap |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | ZoetisZTSBig pharma | 11.6 | 3.2 | $30.3B |
| 2 | The Cigna GroupCIDistribution & pharmacy infrastructure | 11.8 | 0.3 | $75.4B |
| 3 | Bristol Myers SquibbBMYBig pharma | 13.0 | 2.5 | $121B |
| 4 | IncyteINCYBiotech & innovation | 14.2 | 3.9 | $22.9B |
| 5 | GE HealthCareGEHCMedtech & devices | 15.0 | 1.4 | $29.7B |
| 6 | Boston ScientificBSXMedtech & devices | 16.7 | 2.9 | $61.2B |
| 7 | United TherapeuticsUTHRBiotech & innovation | 17.4 | 7.2 | $22.9B |
| 8 | RegeneronREGNBiotech & innovation | 17.6 | 4.9 | $76.1B |
| 9 | Neurocrine BiosciencesNBIXBiotech & innovation | 20.5 | 4.3 | $14.4B |
| 10 | ResMedRMDMedtech & devices | 21.1 | 5.7 | $32.1B |