What Happened?
A number of stocks fell in the morning session after concerns grew over a rising number of uninsured patients. The trend was highlighted in HCA Healthcare's recent earnings report, which pointed to a 'negative payer mix shift.' This term refers to a change in the types of insurance patients have, in this case, an increase in uninsured individuals resulting from losses in health insurance exchange coverage.
For HCA, this shift was significant, reducing pre-tax income by an estimated $400 million in the quarter. The development raises concerns for the broader hospital industry, as a higher volume of uninsured patients generally leads to more uncompensated care, potentially squeezing profit margins for other providers as well.
The stock market overreacts to news, and big price drops can present good opportunities to buy high-quality stocks.
Among others, the following stocks were impacted:
- Healthcare Technology for Patients company Hims & Hers Health (NYSE: HIMS) fell 9.3%. Is now the time to buy Hims & Hers Health? Access our full analysis report here, it’s free.
- Drug Development Inputs & Services company Repligen (NASDAQ: RGEN) fell 3.1%. Is now the time to buy Repligen? Access our full analysis report here, it’s free.
- Drug Development Inputs & Services company West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE: WST) fell 4%. Is now the time to buy West Pharmaceutical Services? Access our full analysis report here, it’s free.
- Genomics & Sequencing company 10x Genomics (NASDAQ: TXG) fell 2.9%. Is now the time to buy 10x Genomics? Access our full analysis report here, it’s free.
Zooming In On Hims & Hers Health (HIMS)
Hims & Hers Health’s shares are extremely volatile and have had 65 moves greater than 5% over the last year. In that context, today’s move indicates the market considers this news meaningful but not something that would fundamentally change its perception of the business.
The biggest move we wrote about over the last year was 5 months ago when the stock gained 41.7% on the news that the company announced a collaboration with drugmaker Novo Nordisk to sell its popular GLP-1 weight-loss drugs, which also resolved a recent legal dispute. The deal marked a surprising turn, as Novo Nordisk had been in a legal battle with Hims & Hers over the sale of compounded versions of its blockbuster drugs.
As part of the new partnership, Hims & Hers gained the ability to offer FDA-approved medications like Ozempic and Wegovy directly on its platform. In return, the company planned to limit its offering of compounded semaglutide and stop advertising those products. Following the announcement, Novo Nordisk dismissed its lawsuit against the company, signaling an end to their feud. The agreement was viewed as a strategic shift for Hims & Hers, moving it from a market disruptor to a more established healthcare provider.
Hims & Hers Health is down 11.3% since the beginning of the year, and at $29.62 per share, it is trading 55.2% below its 52-week high of $66.18 from July 2025. Despite the year-to-date decline, investors who bought $1,000 worth of Hims & Hers Health’s shares 5 years ago would now be looking at an investment worth $3,617.
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