Investors looking to boost their portfolios with health care exposure while limiting the risks of company-specific occurrences might want to give their portfolios the basket treatment. There are a wide variety of health-care, pharmaceutical and biotech ETFs for investors and traders of all shapes, sizes and strategies.
U.S. health-care expenditure is expected to increase from $2.39 trillion in 2008 to $2.72 trillion in 2010, with an annual growth rate of about 7%, according to Plunkett Research, Ltd. The industry is also undergoing a major transformation due to the acquisitions made in the past year: mergers like the one between Merck & Co. Inc. (NYSE: MRK) and Schering-Plough Corp. (NYSE: SGP) and acquisitions made from giants like Johnson & Johnson (NYSE: JNJ) have made the leading companies in the space even more dominant.
Choosing one company to play the healthcare space could leave investors’ portfolios vulnerable to a number of maladies—one failed clinical trial or one poor acquisition could end up wreaking havoc. Fortunately, investors have plenty to choose from in the ETF space. To read more about health-care ETFs and the various funds featured in Henry Truc’s article, go to page 27 of the upcoming digital issue of EQUITIES Magazine. To access this issue of the magazine and more, sign up for a free one-year subscription to EQUITIES Magazine.
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Since 1951, EQUITIES has served both retail and institutional investors by examining industry trends, analyzing strategies and opportunities, and profiling financial leaders and emerging public companies. Its global audience increased dramatically after the launch of its European and digital versions, as well as its website, which provides free real-time market quotes and a free customizable, real-time portfolio-management interface. EQUITIES is also one of a select group of publications available on the Apple iPhone.
