HOW TO PLAY IT

The global pandemic forced health-care companies to be more agile and innovative. The best way to play this trend is Danaher.

The Washington, D.C.–based conglomerate controls 20 health-care and scientific businesses operating under a shared business strategy. Its subsidiary, Cepheid, won FDA approval in March 2020 for the first point-of-care coronavirus test kit, with results ready in only 45 minutes. The innovation was heralded as a new phase of testing. Danaher executives estimated in January that 2021 sales would be approximately $29 billion, up more than 30% from a year ago. Based on sales momentum, shares could trade to $380 during the next 18 months, a gain of 46% from current levels.