Investors have been flocking to Biogen since the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved its Alzheimer's treatment, Aduhelm, earlier this month. The stock has climbed 30% in about two weeks. But I'm concerned about how far the stock can go from here. Aduhelm has drawn criticism from experts regarding its efficacy and pricing. And Biogen's older blockbusters face generic competition.
So, I would hold off on buying Biogen at the moment. Instead, I would turn to the following three stocks. One has been posting double- and triple-digit revenue growth. The other is a pharmaceutical giant with a long history of dividend payments. And the third is a trillion-dollar leader in e-commerce and cloud computing. Let's take a closer look.
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Teladoc Health
The coronavirus pandemic gave Teladoc Health (TDOC +0.88%) a major push last year. As people opted to stay home as much as possible, they turned to the telemedicine platform for virtual medical visits. As a result, Teladoc finished the year with a 98% increase in revenue to more than $1 billion and a 156% gain in visits.
And signs are pointing to continued growth -- even as the crisis eases and eventually ends. In the first quarter of this year, Teladoc posted a triple-digit revenue increase and a double-digit gain in visits. The company said millennials in particular are showing a sustained interest in virtual visits. Teladoc even lifted its full-year guidance for revenue and visits.
The overall market points to growth too. The global telehealth market, at a 25% compound annual growth rate, is forecast to reach $559 billion by 2027, according to Fortune Business Insights.
Teladoc last year acquired Livongo Health -- and that gave the company expertise in the virtual management of chronic conditions. Teladoc already sees results. More than 15% of chronic care members are enrolled in multiple programs. That's compared to only about 5% a year ago.
We can expect to see the full benefits of the Livongo operation in the coming quarters. With the shares down about 20% year to date, this is a good opportunity to get in on the Teladoc story.
Johnson & Johnson
When you think about Johnson & Johnson (JNJ 1.37%) these days, the company's coronavirus vaccine may come to mind. But there's a lot more to this healthcare giant. The company's branches include consumer health, medical devices, and pharmaceuticals. J&J's annual revenue and profit generally have climbed over the years -- to more than $82 billion and $14 billion, respectively.
Dividends also are a big plus for investors. J&J is a Dividend King. That means it's increased its dividend for at least 50 consecutive years. Right now, J&J pays out an annual dividend of $4.24. And the dividend yield is 2.59%.
J&J's dividend surpasses those of big pharma rivals Pfizer and Bristol Myers Squibb.
JNJ Dividend data by YCharts
What about share price? J&J hasn't soared on coronavirus vaccine news like smaller biotech rivals Moderna and Novavax.
But over time, J&J has brought its investors both dividend payments, as mentioned above, and steady share gains.
J&J is a great stock to add to your portfolio and hold on to for the long term.
Amazon
Amazon (AMZN +3.47%) has shown it's unstoppable when it comes to growth. The latest news comes from the Prime Day 48-hour sale earlier this week. Sales totaled more than $11 billion, CNBC reported, citing Adobe Analytics data. That's 6.1% higher than sales during last year's Prime Day, according to the report.
Prime Day is just the icing on the cake. Amazon's annual revenue has been climbing for more than a decade and in 2020 totaled $386 billion. Annual profit has been on the rise for the past five years -- now reaching more than $21 billion. This is thanks to the company's global dominance in online retail and cloud computing.
In fact, cloud computing business Amazon Web Services makes up nearly half of Amazon's total operating income. Importantly, Amazon said in the most recent earnings call that during the pandemic companies decided they didn't want to manage their technology infrastructure -- and that movement is continuing.
Amazon's strength is also in its diversification. The company has even expanded into pharmacy. Amazon Pharmacy offers members of its Prime membership program extra benefits such as lower prices and free two-day delivery.
Amazon's share price -- at more than $3,500 -- may look hefty. But considering its market-leading position in online retail and cloud computing, revenue seems unstoppable. And that's why the shares probably will be unstoppable too.
