McKesson and More Big Movers in Healthcare on December 5, 2012

The Nasdaq has declined 1%, the S&P 500 is trading down 0.1% and the Dow has risen 0.2% after the morning's trading. The healthcare sector is the category of stocks relating to medical and healthcare goods or services. This sector includes hospital management firms, health maintenance organizations (HMOs), biotechnology and a variety of medical products. Stocks in the healthcare sector are often considered to be defensive because the products and services are essential. Even during economic downturns, people will still require medical aid and medicine to overcome illness. Having a consistent demand for goods and services makes this sector less sensitive to business cycle fluctuations.

The Healthcare sector (XLV) has been relatively flat overall, and these are the biggest movers in the sector so far:

Company	Market Cap	Percentage Change
Affymax (Nasdaq:AFFY)	$909.8 million	-3.3%
Questcor Pharmaceuticals (Nasdaq:QCOR)	$1.54 billion	-2.8%
Valeant Pharmaceuticals Int (NYSE:VRX)	$16.96 billion	+2.3%
Ensign Group (Nasdaq:ENSG)	$554 million	+2%
Shire Plc (Nasdaq:SHPG)	$16.74 billion	+1.9%
McKesson (NYSE:MCK)	$22.3 billion	-1.3%
Alexion Pharmaceuticals (Nasdaq:ALXN)	$18.49 billion	-1.1%

Software Summary: Finviz.com Stock Screener

Affymax (Nasdaq:AFFY) is down 3.3% to reach $23.66 per share. The company is currently trading a volume of 200,806 shares. This is 0.4 times its average volume over the past three months.

Questcor Pharmaceuticals (Nasdaq:QCOR) has fallen 2.8% and is currently trading at $25.57 per share. So far today, the company's volume is 674,906 shares, 0.4 times the current daily average.

After rising 2.3%, Valeant Pharmaceuticals Int (NYSE:VRX) is currently trading at a share price of $58.23. The company is currently trading a volume of 895,575 shares.

Increasing 2%, Ensign Group (Nasdaq:ENSG) is trading at $26.19 per share. So far today, the company's volume is 44,483 shares,.

Shire Plc (Nasdaq:SHPG) has risen 1.9% to hit a current price of $90.92 per share. This morning, the company is trading a volume of 170,839 shares. This is 0.7 times the current three-month average.

Slipping 1.3%, McKesson (NYSE:MCK) is currently trading at $93.25 per share. At 505,924 shares, the company's volume so far today is in keeping with its current daily average.

Currently trading at $94.13 per share, Alexion Pharmaceuticals (Nasdaq:ALXN) has fallen 1.1%. So far today, the company's volume is 342,437 shares.

The Bottom Line No matter the economic climate, Wall Street will always have stocks that make major moves each week. Daily stock performance should be weighed against historical performance and put in context of the market overall. Tools like valuation ratios and profit margins, however, are only as useful as the context you put them in; remember to take historical data and competitor performance into account.