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Sector Update: Healthcare Stocks Softer Late Afternoon

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Healthcare stocks declined late Thursday afternoon, with the NYSE Healthcare Index shedding 0.3% and the State Street Health Care Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLV) down 0.5%.

The iShares Biotechnology ETF (IBB) dropped 1.4%.

In corporate news, Cooper (COO) shares fell past 13% after the company cut its fiscal 2026 guidance. Separately, BofA Securities downgraded Cooper to neutral from buy and lowered its price target to $65 from $80. BofA said Cooper could not sell CooperSurgical at an attractive valuation given competition from the Paragard intrauterine device and the fertility litigation settlement.

Novartis (NVS) shareholder Artisan Partners called for changes to the Swiss drugmaker's board following two consecutive drug trial setbacks that sent shares tumbling, Reuters reported, citing an interview with Artisan managing director David Samra. Novartis shares were up 0.3%.

Orchestra BioMed (OBIO) shares rose past 7% after BTIG upgraded the stock the stock to buy from neutral, with a price target of $10.

BioCryst Pharmaceuticals' (BCRX) Ordaleyo faces competitive pressure in the hereditary angioedema treatment space, and its shares are expected to settle within an in-line trading range in the near term, RBC Capital Markets said in a note. RBC downgraded the company's stock rating to sector-perform from outperform and reduced the price target to $11 from $13. BioCryst shares fell 6%.

What else is happening in Sectors?

Sectors

Sector Update: Energy Stocks Gain Late Afternoon

Energy stocks were higher late Wednesday afternoon, with the NYSE Energy Sector Index rising 1.2% and the State Street Energy Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLE) adding 1.1%.The Philadelphia Oil Service Sector Index was up 0.4%, and the Dow Jones US Utilities Index fell 1%.Brent crude prices crossed $100 per barrel for the first time since late July as Iran attacked 10 ships near the Strait of Hormuz, deepening the Middle East conflict.Front-month West Texas Intermediate crude oil rose 3.6% to $96.39 a barrel, and the global benchmark Brent crude contract gained 3.5% to $101.34 a barrel. Henry Hub natural gas futures fell 3.8% to $2.81 per 1 million BTU.In corporate news, BP (BP) has attracted interest from several potential buyers for its North Sea operations, Bloomberg reported. Potential suitors include Equinor (EQNR) and Shell (SHEL) joint venture Adura and TotalEnergies-backed (TTE) NEO Next+, the report said. BP shares rose 1.7%.Baker Hughes (BKR) said it now expects full-year revenue of $28.50 billion to $30.30 billion, compared with prior outlook of $26.65 billion to $28.05 billion. Analysts surveyed by FactSet expect $28.03 billion. Its shares lost 0.3%.New Fortress Energy (NFE) said Wednesday that its board approved a 1-for-50 reverse stock split of its class A common stock. The reverse stock split is intended to help the company regain compliance with the minimum bid price requirement for continued listing on the Nasdaq Global Select Market. New Fortress shares rose 4.8%.Shell Lubricants and Faw Trucks have jointly developed a battery pack that has been successfully tested on the Shell Starship 3.0 hybrid concept truck and is ready for future use in Faw's hybrid commercial vehicles, the companies said. Shell shares were up 0.3%.

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Sectors

Sector Update: Healthcare Stocks Softer Late Afternoon

Healthcare stocks were lower late Wednesday afternoon with the NYSE Healthcare Index and the State Street Health Care Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLV) each shedding 0.2%.The iShares Biotechnology ETF (IBB) declined 0.8%.In corporate news, UnitedHealth (UNH) sold an interest in some of its Optum Health operations in Florida to TPG (TPG), Bloomberg reported. UnitedHealth shares were down 2.2%.Agilent Technologies (A) shares fell 1.2% after UBS downgraded the stock to neutral from buy.Rezolute (RZLT) said Wednesday that the US Food and Drug Administration is still reviewing data from a phase 3 study of ersodetug for the potential treatment of hypoglycemia due to congenital hyperinsulinism. The company said it does not have a specific timeline on when it will receive feedback or guidance from the FDA on potential next steps. Rezolute shares were down past 7%.Opus Genetics (IRD) shares jumped 35% after it said that patients with Bestrophin-1-related retinal diseases showed clinically meaningful improvement in visual function in the low-dose cohort 1 of its BIRD-1 phase 1/2 trial evaluating OPGx-BEST1.

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Sectors

Sector Update: Tech Stocks Ease Late Afternoon

Tech stocks eased late Wednesday afternoon with the State Street Technology Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLK) little changed after erasing earlier gains and the State Street SPDR S&P Semiconductor ETF (XSD) dropping 0.2%.The Philadelphia Semiconductor index rose 0.2%.In corporate news, Apple (AAPL) introduced iPhone Duo, its first foldable iPhone, featuring a 7.6-inch inner display and 5.4-inch outer display, both using Super Retina XDR technology. Apple shares fell 0.2%.Dell Technologies (DELL) is set to raise $5 billion via an investment-grade bond sale that attracted about $23 billion in peak orders, Bloomberg reported. Dell shares were little changed.Meta Platforms (META) launched a new personal AI agent called Muse AI, which can send emails, book travel plans, and continue working after users close the app. Meta shares jumped 6.4%.Analog Devices (ADI) agreed to buy Alif Semiconductor for $1.35 billion in cash to add AI-native microcontrollers and fusion processors. Analog Devices shares eased 0.1%.

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