Health and Healthcare
How Health Care Stocks Responded to the Shelved Health Care Bill
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Despite touting himself as an incredible dealmaker and negotiater, Trump faced the biggest defeat of his presidency thus far when legislation to repeal the Affordable Care Act was pulled from a vote in the House of Representatives. This had long been a pillar of Trump’s campaign, but it seems that even he can’t get his own party behind him to back this deal.
Investors had been waiting all week to see this vote, which originally was set for Thursday then postponed to Friday. And now there is no vote. For the time being, it seems that Obamacare will remain the law of the land.
Many saw this vote as a barometer for how much leverage Trump has and how effective of a leader he can be. Some analysts have even speculated that if Trump can’t get backing to repeal the controversial Affordable Care Act, then reforming the tax code could be problematic as well.
24/7 Wall St. has taken a look at a few companies within the health care sector that might have seen a reaction from this vote, or lack thereof. The Health Care Select Sector SPDR ETF (NYSEMKT: XLV) closed relatively flat on Friday, but there were some companies that saw fallout.
Shares of UnitedHealth Group Inc. (NYSE: UNH) closed Friday slightly lower at $165.00, with a consensus analyst price target of $185.05 and a 52-week trading range of $125.26 to $172.14. The stock was up 0.7% in the after-hours trading session.
Aetna Inc. (NYSE: AET) shares closed Friday down 0.8% at $126.77. The stock has a 52-week range of $104.59 to $136.50 and a consensus price target of $139.00.
Pfizer Inc. (NYSE: PFE) ended the day down 0.9% at $34.00, within a 52-week range of $29.41 to $37.39 and with a consensus price target of $38.00.
Shares of Merck & Co. Inc. (NYSE: MRK) closed at $63.18. The consensus price target is $68.75, and the 52-week range is $52.44 to $66.80.
Universal Health Services Inc. (NYSE: UHS) saw its shares drop 2.6% on Friday to end at $121.89. The consensus price target is $139.00, and the 52-week range is $99.72 to $139.77.
Gilead Sciences Inc. (NASDAQ: GILD) shares ended the week at $67.51, barely higher on the day, and up a little more in the after-hours. The stock has a 52-week trading range of $65.38 to $103.10 and a consensus price target of $79.10.
Shares of Cigna Corp. (NYSE: CI) closed down 2.3% at $145.82, with a consensus price target of $164.43 and a 52-week range of $115.03 to $154.83. The stock was down an additional 1.2% in Friday’s after-hours session.
Anthem Inc. (NYSE: ANTM) closed Friday down 1.6% at $162.75. It has a 52-week range of $114.85 to $170.79 and a consensus price target of $177.69.
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