• LAST PRICE
    138.0500
  • TODAY'S CHANGE (%)
    Trending Up1.2000 (0.8769%)
  • Bid / Lots
    137.4500/ 1
  • Ask / Lots
    138.7200/ 1
  • Open / Previous Close
    137.0000 / 136.8500
  • Day Range
    Low 136.9550
    High 138.1400
  • 52 Week Range
    Low 71.5100
    High 141.5400
  • Volume
    608,798
    below average

Search Criteria

Filter search criteria using below inputs

Click on magnifying glass icon to search

Search Criteria - - - Stocks (0)
CompanyCountrySymbol

TD Direct Investing offers more research reports than any other discount brokerage in Canada. Provided from the industry's most trusted sources, our service includes timely, relevant information for the current trading day and comprehensive industry, sector, and insider trading reports for further analysis.

Open a New Account, or Login if you're a client.

  • Mar 18, 2024

  • Mar 13, 2024

      Show headlines and story abstract
    • 4:40PM ET on Wednesday Mar 13, 2024 by Dow Jones
      Companies Mentioned: HUM, LLY, NVO, UNH, HCA, DVA
      By Charley Grant U.S. elections and healthcare stocks have often been a losing combination. This year, with another contest looming, investors are piling in. The S&P 500's healthcare sector has advanced 7.1% in 2024. That is its best start since 2017, according to Dow Jones Market Data. The sector, which often fails to keep the pace in a bull market, has nearly matched the performance of the S&P 500. The rally also bucks recent history for the sector ahead of a presidential election. The stocks underperformed the broad market by 14 percentage points in 2016 and again in 2020. In 1992, a year when health policy was a major election issue, the sector fell 18%. Shares of Eli Lilly, the biggest company in the group, have gained 30% in 2024, powered by booming sales of its weight-loss drugs. DaVita, which operates dialysis centers, has rallied 32%. U.S.-listed shares of Novo Nordisk, which makes Ozempic, are up 29%. Hospital chain HCA Healthcare has advanced about 19%. "Overall, there's less concern around a politically driven drawdown this year," said Will Sevush, healthcare strategist at Jefferies. "It's a lot tamer relative to the past at the moment." Investors in the industry pay close attention to political developments. Changes in laws or regulations can have a large impact on sales and profits for health insurers, hospitals, and drug and medical-device companies. A 2015 vow to crack down on high drug prices from then-presidential candidate Hillary Clinton sparked a major selloff in biotech stocks. The Nasdaq Biotechnology Index fell 13% in a single week and 30% over six months. This time around, investors say there is less fear of the unknown if either Joe Biden or Donald Trump wins the presidency, even though both candidates have promised to rein in drug prices. "We already know some of the key policies," said Dan Lyons, a healthcare portfolio manager at Janus Henderson Investors. "Markets have a pretty good sense of what to expect." The Inflation Reduction Act empowered federal regulators to negotiate the price of some drugs for Medicare beneficiaries, and Biden proposed expanding that program last week. But new prices won't take effect until 2026. For now, that sense of predictability has investors focusing on what could go right. Lyons cited an aging population that will need more medical care over time, a rush of novel therapies reaching the market and relatively low stock valuations as reasons he is bullish. The Food and Drug Administration approved 55 new drugs in 2023, above the 10-year average of 46. Health stocks trade about 19 times their expected earnings over the next 12 months, according to FactSet, slightly below the valuation of the S&P 500. Healthcare is a key component of the U.S. economy and overall stock market. Total U.S. health spending reached $4.5 trillion in 2022, according to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. That accounted for 17.3% of gross domestic product. Not every stock in the sector is thriving. Insurers UnitedHealth Group and Humana are down 7.3% and 25%, respectively, in 2024. Patients have sought more nonemergency medical care after the pandemic induced a lull, while enrollment in privately managed Medicare plans has slowed. Write to Charley Grant at charles.grant@wsj.com Corrections & Amplifications This article was corrected on March 18, 2024 because it incorrectly said health stocks underperformed by 5 points. Health stocks underperformed the S&P 500 by 14 percentage points in 2016. (END) Dow Jones Newswires March 13, 2024 16:40 ET (20:40 GMT)
  • Mar 11, 2024

  • Mar 8, 2024

Peers Headlines