MDLN vs WST: Medline and West Pharmaceutical Services compared
The short version
From the latest prices and each company's SEC filings. Who's ahead on each measure, not which to buy.
- Medline is the larger company, worth $28.5B, close to West Pharmaceutical Services's $26.0B.
- West Pharmaceutical Services grew revenue faster over the last year (+13.8% vs +11.5%).
- West Pharmaceutical Services keeps more of each dollar of revenue as operating profit (20.4% vs 7.8%).
- West Pharmaceutical Services's price assumes faster free cash flow growth: about 18% a year, against 6% for Medline (reverse DCF).
Side by side
The stronger figure is shaded where higher (or, for valuation multiples, lower) reads as better. How the implied growth works.
| Measure | MDLN | WST |
|---|---|---|
| Market cap | $28.5B | $26.0B |
| Share price | $36.26 | $366.00 |
| Revenue (last fiscal year) | $28.4B | $3.1B |
| Free cash flow (last fiscal year) | $1.3B | $469M |
| Revenue growth, last year | +11.5% | +13.8% |
| Revenue growth per year, last 5 fiscal years | +10.6% | +2.1% |
| Operating margin | 7.8% | 20.4% |
| Net margin | 4.1% | 17.0% |
| Return on equity | 10.0% | 18.9% |
| P/E (trailing) | — | 49.2x |
| Price / free cash flow | 16.4x | 55.4x |
| EV / EBITDA | 13.1x | 31.1x |
| FCF growth the price implies | 6.2% | 18.4% |
| Dividend yield | — | 0.23% |
| Debt / equity | 1.75x | 0.36x |
| Fundamental grade | C | C |
| Superinvestors holding it | 4 | 3 |
| Insider purchases, last 12 months | 2 | 2 |
Results from SEC filings
Revenue and free cash flow by fiscal year, from each company's 10-K filings.
Medline
| Year | Revenue | Free cash flow | Op. margin |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | $23.2B | $1.4B | 5.4% |
| 2024 | $25.5B | $1.4B | 8.4% |
| 2025 | $28.4B | $1.3B | 7.8% |
West Pharmaceutical Services
| Year | Revenue | Free cash flow | Op. margin |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | $2.8B | $331M | 26.6% |
| 2022 | $2.9B | $439M | 25.4% |
| 2023 | $2.9B | $414M | 22.9% |
| 2024 | $2.9B | $276M | 19.7% |
| 2025 | $3.1B | $469M | 19.0% |
Where the revenue comes from
Medline · by segments, 2025
Supply Chain Solutions$14.7B52%
Medline Brand$13.7B48%
West Pharmaceutical Services · by segments, 2025
Proprietary Products$2.5B81%
Contract-Manufactured Products$582M19%
Compare them in fullFifteen years of statements, quarterly results, DCF and IRR models, and any number of peers side by side.
Open MDLN in InvestinglyQuestions
Which is bigger, Medline or West Pharmaceutical Services?
Medline (MDLN), at $28.5B against $26.0B.
Which grows faster, MDLN or WST?
West Pharmaceutical Services: revenue grew +13.8% over the last year, against +11.5%.
Prices and ratios as of the last daily update; statements from SEC filings. Information only, not investment advice.