The Health Care Select Sector SPDR (NYSEArca: XLV), the largest health care ETF by assets, allocates 42.6% of its weight to the biotech and pharmaceuticals stocks mentioned here. XLV, which hit an all-time high last Friday, embodies the strength of the health care sector in 2014. XLV has added $1.8 billion in new assets this year and has surged 24.5%, but those superlatives are not enough to make it one of the 10 best sector ETFs.
Health insurance and health care services providers are also favorite shorts for hedge funds. FactSet data indicate Dow component UnitedHealth (NYSE: UNH), WellPoint (NYSE: WLP) and Express Scripts (NasdaqGS: ESRX) had a combined hedge fund short interest of $3.7 billion at the end of last month.
Those are the three largest holdings in the iShares U.S. Healthcare Providers ETF (NYSEArca: IHF), combining for nearly 30% of that ETF’s weight. The $580.3 million IHF, which also hit an all-time high last Friday, is up 15.1% this year. [Get a Checkup With This Health Care ETF]
FactSet chart
Chart Courtesy: FactSet