The healthcare sector in Canada is quite diverse, even if we exclude the cannabis stocks from this list. It includes biotech companies that may offer explosive growth potential with the right breakthrough and senior care businesses that may offer reliable income potential.
Many healthcare stocks have the potential for contrarian performance — i.e., they can surge even if the entire market slows, but that’s a temporary benefit in most cases. And if you are looking for healthcare stocks you can hold for the next 10 years, three should be on your radar right now.
A biotech company
NervGen Pharma (TSXV:NGEN) is a clinical-stage biotech company — i.e., a company that studies the impact of a treatment on the human body.
There are typically three phases, but if a treatment passes all three of them, it’s generally approved for the general public. NervGen has two promising candidates for nervous system self-repair, and one of them, NVG-291, was recently approved for phase 1b and 2a trials for spinal cord injuries.
That approval is one of the reasons why the stock shot up 124% in under two months. The stock is close to hitting a plateau right now, but assuming the treatment passes phase two and three trials as well, it might be enough to trigger another, more prominent bullish phase in the stock.
Another treatment in the pipeline is being studied for its impact on stroke and Alzheimer’s disease, and a breakthrough in its trial could lead to the explosive growth of the NervGen stock, considering the fact that there are millions of patients in North America alone.
A digital healthcare company
Vancouver-based WELL Health Technologies (TSX:WELL) is a digital healthcare company and Canada’s largest outpatient medical clinic owner-operator, with over 3,300 healthcare service providers serving in the 183 clinics owned and operated by the company.
It supports over 33,000 healthcare providers with its platform and range of digital solutions and applications. The platform also serves as the centre of a digital ecosystem, with about 54 dedicated applications.
The stock itself has lived through at least the first iteration of its “golden days.” It rose over 7,800% between mid-2016 and early 2021. It slumped hard afterward and is still trading at a 55% discount. However, digital healthcare services are expected to gain more traction in the future.
If the company keeps growing organically — i.e., more clinics and healthcare professionals — it may emerge as a healthcare powerhouse in North America, maybe even within the next decade.
A dental care network
Dentalcorp Holdings (TSX:DNTL) is one of the largest dental professional networks in Canada and has over 535 locations in its portfolio that collectively cater to over five million patient visits annually. The network is also involved in a variety of outreach programs and partners with various nonprofits and institutions.
The performance of the stock has been quite lacklustre so far, and it has been in the bear market phase practically since its inception. This has caused it to lose over half of its valuation, and it’s still struggling to gain a strong bullish footing.
However, it’s emerging as a leader in the Canadian healthcare sector and consolidating dental practices under one umbrella, and this strategy may start yielding positive results for its shareholders in the coming decade.
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Foolish takeaway
The three healthcare stocks can yield powerful results for their investors in the next 10 years, assuming they remain on track with their breakthroughs, trial approvals, consolidation, and organic growth. While all three are relatively safe, it’s imperative to understand that they all carry certain risks based on their business model and position in the market.
