Is it a Wise Decision to Invest in Merck and Co. (MRK)?

ClearBridge Investments, an investment management firm, published its “Sustainability Leaders Strategy” fourth quarter 2021 investor letter – a copy of which can be downloaded here. The ClearBridge Sustainability Leaders Strategy outperformed its Russell 3000 Index benchmark during the fourth quarter. On an absolute basis, the Strategy had gains in nine of 10 sectors in which it was invested (out of 11 sectors total). The main contributors were the IT, consumer discretionary, and health care sectors. The communication services sector was the sole detractor. Spare some time to check the fund’s top 5 holdings to have a clue about their top bets for 2022.

ClearBridge Investments Sustainability Leaders Strategy, in its Q4 2021 investor letter, mentioned Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) and discussed its stance on the firm. Founded in 1891, Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) is a Kenilworth, New Jersey-based pharmaceutical company with a $211.0 billion market capitalization, and is currently spearheaded by its CEO, Robert M. Davis. Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) delivered a -12.67% return since the beginning of the year, while its 12-month returns are up by 6.94%. The stock closed at $83.49 per share on April 04, 2022.

Here is what ClearBridge Investments Sustainability Leaders Strategy has to say about Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) in its Q4 2021 investor letter:

“Other pharma companies are providing solutions as well. Merck’s antiviral pill molnupiravir is less effective than Pfizer’s, but it will be a helpful alternative for patients who cannot take Pfizer’s due to drug-drug interactions. Merck is also helping to manufacture Johnson & Johnson’s COVID-19 vaccine, which has less stringent storage requirements than the mRNA vaccines do.”

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Our calculations show that Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) failed to obtain a mark on our list of the 30 Most Popular Stocks Among Hedge Funds. Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) was in 80 hedge fund portfolios at the end of the fourth quarter of 2021, compared to 77 funds in the previous quarter. Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) delivered a -11.98% return in the past 3 months.

In December 2021, we also shared another hedge fund’s views on Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) in another article. You can find other letters from hedge funds and prominent investors on our hedge fund investor letters 2021 Q4 page.

Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey.