Healthcare

Max Healthcare Institute

declined around 1.6% on 19 August after having gained during the previous session. Healthcare is a useful defensive sector to study because demand for medical services is less economically sensitive than many discretionary industries. But hospital stocks require careful analysis of occupancy rates, average revenue per occupied bed, operating margins, new-bed additions, capital expenditure and acquisition-related debt. A high-quality hospital business can still become a poor investment if purchased at an excessive valuation.