| Invested through / Financed by |
|
|---|---|
| Asset class | Listed equity |
| Impact strategy | Impact Equities and Bonds |
| Sector | Healthcare |
| Bloomberg ticker | MRK GR |
| ISIN code | DE0006599905 |
| Industry group | Pharmaceuticals, Biotechnology & Life Sciences |
| Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) |
Merck KGaA is a German science and technology company that is organized in three divisions. The Healthcare division (38% of 2020 sales) offers a wide range of pharmaceutical and biological prescription medicines to treat conditions such as cancer, multiple sclerosis and infertility, growth disorders, and certain cardiovascular and metabolic diseases. The Life Sciences division (43% of sales) provides scientists with lab materials, technologies and services for research and biotech production. Performance Materials (19% of sales) develops specialty chemicals for applications like liquid crystals, OLED, pigments and integrated circuits for semiconductor solutions, display solutions and surface solutions.
Merck's biggest market is Asia pacific with 36% of 2020 sales, followed by Europe with 29%, North America with 27%, Latin America with 5%, and rest of the world with 3%. As of December 31, 2020, the company had 58,127 employees worldwide in 66 countries.
Investment rationale
Merck focuses on oncology (treatment of cancer), neurology and immunology, fertility, general medicine and endocrinology (treatment of hormonal diseases), addressing key areas of the global disease burden. The company sells 13 medicines that treat diseases identified as the top access priorities for people living in low- and middle-income countries by the Access to Medicine Foundation and 41% of its R&D projects target priority diseases. Five of its products are on the World Health Organization’s List of Essential Medicine.
Merck publicly pledges to neither file for nor enforce patents in all Least Developed Countries and low-income countries, as well as in several lower-middle income countries and upper-middle income countries. It’s Global Health strategy focuses on availability, affordability, awareness and accessibility and covers some therapeutic areas, including neglected tropical diseases and diabetes mellitus.