Health Insurers Tumble, Device Makers Rally on Rising Elective Surgery Expectations

What happened: UnitedHealth executives said Tuesday at an investor conference that demand for surgeries like knee and hip replacements are picking back up, after the pandemic caused many patients to delay elective care. “There are some indications that looks a little bit like a pent-up demand or delayed demand being satisfied,“ finance chief John Rex said.

Insurer stocks fell. Shares of UnitedHealth, the largest publicly traded insurer, fell more than 7% Wednesday. Humana stock tumbled over 13%. CVS Health, Cigna and Centene also fell sharply.

Medical device stocks rose. Stryker, Zimmer Biomet and Boston Scientific all rallied.

Hospital stocks also rose. More surgeries would lead to higher occupancy and higher revenues. Universal Health Services rose around 5%. HCA Healthcare was up roughly 3%.