According to a research report from Goldman Sachs, the strong trends observed in the mainland healthcare sector last year are expected to continue into this year. However, investors are increasingly incorporating the value of research and development pipelines into their valuation considerations. Consequently, stock trading is becoming more reliant on companies' actual execution capabilities rather than solely on expectations from licensing deals. To achieve above-sector returns this year, greater dependence will be placed on key data releases, actual business transactions, and the visibility of profit realization or inflection points.
Regarding specific segments, the firm has turned constructive on Contract Development and Manufacturing Organizations (CDMOs), citing factors such as accelerating growth, strong product cycles, limited increases in geopolitical risk, and reasonable valuations. It upgraded its rating on WUXI APPTEC (02359, 603259.SH) and WUXI XDC (02268) to "Buy."
For biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies, the firm is adopting a selective strategy, favoring companies with upcoming key data readouts where early data has already shown promise, and which also have expectations for concrete business deals. It holds a positive view on SKB BIO-B (06990), HENLIUS (02696), and HANSOH PHARMA (03692).
The firm maintains a Neutral outlook on the medical device sector, noting that while the industry has bottomed out, a gradual recovery will take time. It recommends buying shares of Angelalign Technology (06699) and Weigaofenzhuang (01066). For the healthcare services sector, the firm remains relatively cautious due to the ongoing effects of cost-control measures and a weak consumer cycle. It downgraded its rating on HealthCare Global (06078) to "Neutral."