Year-to-date, Health Care Select Sector SPDR (NYSEArca: XLV), gained 9.1%, iShares U.S. Healthcare ETF (NYSEArca: IYH) rose 10.1%, Vanguard Health Care ETF (NYSEArca: VHT) increased 10.8% and Fidelity MSCI Health Care Index ETF (NYSEArca: FHLC) advanced 10.7%.
While the sector may seem slightly pricey due to its continued gains this year, investors should keep in mind that the area has a relatively strong outlook on expected profit growth and better earnings momentum, according to BlackRock.
The healthcare ETFs include a large position in pharmaceutical companies. For example, pharma makes up 42.4% of XLV, 40.5% of IYH and 36.8% of VHT.
For a more targeted approach to the healthcare sector, investors can also target pharmaceutical names through the iShares U.S. Pharmaceuticals ETF (NYSEArca: IHE) and Market Vectors Pharmaceutical ETF (NYSEArca: PPH). Year-to-date, IHE was up 14.5% and PPH was 10.9% higher.
For more information on the healthcare sector, visit our healthcare category.
Max Chen contributed to this article.