There is an inherent problem with purchasing stocks. Stocks are investments that are purchased for the long term. Unfortunately, over the long term things can change dramatically. Take a company like Polaroid. As recently as the mid-1990’s no one dreamed what would happen with the digital camera revolution. Yet in a few short years digital cameras drove Polaroid into bankruptcy. So how to guard against that? One way is to pick industries that are ‘phase out’ proof. One of those is of course healthcare.
People, strange as it seems, continue to demand to be healthy and to live longer. And the likelihood of that changing strikes me as a little low. That’s why healthcare stocks make sense over very long periods of time. But there are risks of course. So here are a few things you can do to put the odds more in your favor.
- Diversify into more than one area of healthcare. Don’t concentrate just in biotech, or in nursing homes. Spread it around.
- Choose stocks that aren’t as dependent on medicare. There will be cutbacks and program changes in medicare over the next many years, so limit your exposure.
- Pick companies that have multiple income streams. Don’t invest in a company that just has one product. If the competition trumps them, they could be in big trouble.
- Don’t overpay. This is always true of all stocks of course. It’s possible that the next several years anticipated profits are already priced into the stock.
Follow those rules, and you might pick up some gems that could be in your portfolio for many years if not decades.