Best Health Care Stocks To Buy Right Now? 4 In Focus
Health care stocks have been on a tear in the stock market. No matter what’s happening elsewhere in the economy, the health care industry will likely continue to work towards improving our quality of life. With this being the case, it would make sense then that investors are turning to top health care stocks to buy now. For the most part, the health care industry, in particular, has been put under the spotlight over the past year. Thanks to the sudden need for a coronavirus vaccine, countless people now know more about drug regulatory processes.
On top of that, the broader market has not been all that kind to tech investors lately. With all the recent volatility amongst tech stocks, investors would likely be looking towards more defensive plays. This is when top health care stocks, which are mostly resilient to the happenings in the world, come into play.
For instance, clinical-stage biotech company Brooklyn Immunotherapeutics Inc. (NYSE: BTX) is looking at gains of nearly 2,000% over the past month. This would be thanks to the right to an exclusive license the company intends to use for the development of mRNA gene-editing compounds and cell therapies. At the same time, vaccine companies such as Moderna (NASDAQ: MRNA) and Johnson & Johnson (NYSE: JNJ) are still holding up. If anything, the ongoing fight against the coronavirus is still one that investors appear to be betting on. If all this has you keen to add some top health care stocks to your portfolio, here are four to consider in the stock market today.
Top Healthcare Stocks To Watch Right Now
- Precipio Inc. (NASDAQ: PRPO)
- Ocugen Inc. (NASDAQ: OCGN)
- Intuitive Surgical Inc. (NASDAQ: ISRG)
- Novavax Inc. (NASDAQ: NVAX)
Precipio Inc.
First, up the list, Precipio is red hot in the stock market now. The company is launching its rapid COVID-19 antibody test for sale on the world’s biggest e-commerce Amazon (NASDAQ: AMZN). More impressively, this was the first U.S.-based test to receive emergency use authorization by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for point-of-care. The development sparked a strong move in PRPO stock as it saw gains of over 170% on Monday’s intraday trading. And it continued to soar 27% on today’s opening bell.
“We are very excited to be working with our partner Nirmidas to get this important rapid test on the largest retail platform in the world. We look forward to working with other retail outlets, as well as with Nirmidas to advance this product into at-home use, following the receipt of appropriate FDA authorization.”- Ilan Danieli, CEO of Precipio.
Apart from the COVID-19 antibody test kits, the company’s main point of interest is actually on its diagnostic platform. In particular, Precipio created HemeScreen technology to help prevent misdiagnosis in certain cancers. In fact, earlier this year, the company signed an agreement with two of the largest oncology practices in the U.S. With so many exciting developments surrounding the company, would you be chasing PRPO stock in the stock market today?
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Ocugen Inc.
Coming up next, we have clinical-stage biopharmaceutical specialist Ocugen. The company was focusing on developing cures for blindness diseases but the onset of the coronavirus pandemic has shifted the company’s focus. OCGN stock investors now own a stake in a business that’s competing with other COVID-19 vaccine makers. And if you had placed your bets on OCGN stock at the beginning of December, you would have reaped at least 4,500% gains during this period. The company’s shares received another catalyst after the company released promising data of its vaccine candidate.
The company has been working endlessly to advance the development of COVID-19 vaccine candidate Covaxin with partner Bharat Biotech. Researchers at the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) believe its vaccine candidate could protect against multiple coronavirus strains.
“Covaxin continues to show strong results in all the studies conducted to date,” Ocugen co-founder and CEO Dr. Shankar Musunuri said in a press release. “We continue to believe this vaccine is a critical tool to include in our national arsenal to fight this pandemic.” Should the company be successful in receiving regulatory approval, I won’t be surprised if there’s another round of breakout in OCGN stock.
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Intuitive Surgical
When you are putting up a list of health care stocks to buy, it’s hard to not include Intuitive Surgical on the list. The company is a leader in robotic-assisted surgery. To date, the company has helped tens of thousands of surgeons perform 7 million procedures worldwide. By using precise and efficient robots, the company excels in minimally invasive care. Its da Vinci surgical system will help enhance surgeon capabilities. It provides precision, less bleeding, and faster recovery times.
From the company’s first-quarter earnings, revenue came in 18% higher to $1.29 billion compared to the prior-year period. Intuitive Surgical’s bottom-line improvement on a non-GAAP basis was also worth the mention. The company reported a non-GAAP net income of $427 million compared to $323 million in the prior-year period. Simply put, the company appears to be firing on all cylinders.
Investors should also keep their eyes on how Intuitive Surgical expands in Asia and other key markets. The potential for robotic-assisted surgical devices remains huge, and Intuitive Surgical is on the leading edge of that innovative wave. With that in mind, would you be investing in ISRG stock?
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Novavax
Last but not least, coronavirus vaccine candidate Novavax is one health care stock worth watching. That’s because the company will soon file for emergency use authorization for its COVID-19 vaccine candidate. The company’s two-dose vaccine posted 96% efficacy against the novel coronavirus. It also appears to have the ability to handle today’s COVID-19 variants to a certain degree. Furthermore, Novavax reported that the vaccine is 100% effective in preventing severe side effects which may require hospitalization.
Not sure if you can remember, Operation Warp Speed agreed to pay Novavax $1.6 billion in order to preorder 100 million doses. Without going too much into financial details, at $16 a dose, the Novavax contracts could be worth over $6 billion. Should the company’s vaccine receive FDA authorization, this would be a huge, multibillion-dollar product for the company.
Another exciting development is that the company is also looking into combining both its COVID-19 vaccine and flu vaccine into a single shot. This certainly sounds more attractive compared to other COVID-19 vaccines. Clinical trials are expected to be launched in the middle of 2021. Even if these developments don’t come to fruition, the company has yet another potential revenue generator in its flu vaccine under development which may be market-ready in a few years. With all these going on, will you consider investing in NVAX stock?
