Health-care stocks are making a comeback, Jim Cramer says

CNBC’s Jim Cramer on Thursday highlighted health stocks, a rebounding segment he said is helping to lead the market higher.

After being discounted and “left for dead” amid the coronavirus pandemic, health stocks are bouncing back, he said.

“I think that the left-behind health care stocks are now coming back to life at the expense of the cyclical growth plays, and you should grab one before they all really take off,” the “Mad Money” host said.

The comments come after strong economic data helped carry the Dow Jones Industrial Average above 34,000 for the first time in Thursday’s session. The 30-stock index gained 305 points, or 0.9%, to close at 34,035.99, led by a spike in UnitedHealth Group shares.

UnitedHealth, an insurance provider and Dow component, posted a quarterly report that topped analyst estimates. Positive action could also be found in GlaxoSmithKline, Eli Lilly, Regeneron Pharmaceuticals and Johnson & Johnson, which has been hobbled by its Covid-19 vaccine rollout, Cramer said.

With the exception of Johnson & Johnson, each of these stocks have climbed double digits from their recent lows going back to the top of the year.

“This cohort had fallen so out of favor that it finally represented enormous value. It was just waiting for the signal to move … [and] it happened,” Cramer said. “Given how monumental that move was, I bet it’s far from over.”

Disclosure: Cramer’s charitable trust owns shares of Eli Lilly.

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