Medical Aesthetics Stock Investment Guide: The Right Approach to Unlocking the Global Medical Biotechnology Blue Ocean

Why Are Medical Aesthetics Stocks Worth Watching?

The industry combining healthcare and beauty is booming worldwide, but to accurately grasp investment opportunities, it’s essential to understand the logic of the entire biotech and medical industry.

The global pharmaceutical market is large and continuously expanding. By 2027, the U.S. biopharmaceutical market is projected to reach $445 billion, with a CAGR of 8.5%. Unlike electronics, which fluctuate with economic cycles, the healthcare industry has a natural anti-recession characteristic—people get sick from eating grains, and when they do, they need medical treatment and medication. This determines that healthcare biotech stocks are relatively less affected by economic downturns.

As global aging accelerates, new treatment methods emerge, and telemedicine becomes increasingly popular, the imagination space for medical aesthetics and biotech stocks is enormous. They tend to generate strong stocks and have become a focus for more and more investors.

Why Does the U.S. Pharmaceutical Market Reign Supreme?

Before exploring medical aesthetics stocks and quality healthcare stocks, it’s necessary to understand why the U.S. is the cradle of global pharmaceutical innovation.

The U.S. has the largest and most active biopharmaceutical market in the world, with nearly one million professionals involved in R&D, manufacturing, sales, and other segments across the upstream and downstream. The best tech talent converges here, forming a unique ecological cycle—capital markets are willing to invest, companies can secure ample funds for R&D, and successful drugs attract more investment in turn.

Unlike Taiwan, where annual health insurance pressure keeps drug prices low, discouraging new drug imports, the U.S. pharmaceutical industry exemplifies capitalism—drugs can be priced high and paid for by insurance. This business model stimulates corporate innovation. Coupled with the strictest FDA regulations globally, once a drug is approved by the FDA, approval in other countries is usually swift, further strengthening the U.S. leadership position.

For this reason, the U.S. pharmaceutical industry environment is recognized by global investors as the best, and the top-quality medical stocks and biotech stocks are most concentrated there.

Investment Logic of Medical Aesthetics and Healthcare Stocks

Value comes from future expectations, not current financial reports

Traditional financial indicators often fail for biotech companies. Many biotech firms are in R&D stages, lacking stable cash flow and profitability, and may even incur losses for years. But once a new drug passes clinical trials and gains FDA approval, stock prices often surge.

Take Taiwan biotech company PharmaDrug as an example. During the 2022 stock market crash, its stock price doubled mainly because its drug received orphan drug designation in the U.S. At that time, the company’s EPS was still negative (-2.93 NT dollars), yet investors flocked to it. By October 2023, after completing Phase 3 clinical trial enrollment, and by May 2024 when Q1 financials were announced, the stock reached a high of 388 NT dollars. Investors value its future profit potential.

Therefore, for valuation of medical aesthetics and biotech stocks, institutional investors tend to use PSR (Price-to-Sales Ratio) rather than traditional P/E ratios to better reflect the company’s growth potential.

Blockbuster drugs determine corporate destiny

In the pharmaceutical industry, there’s a term called “blockbusters,” referring to drugs with annual sales exceeding $1 billion. Successful large pharmaceutical companies often reinvest 50-60% of revenue into R&D, even if short-term profit margins decrease. Large institutional investors tend to raise P/E and target prices for these companies because they know that a continuous pipeline of innovative products is the long-term value driver.

Many top biotech giants in the U.S. adopt a strategy of maintaining a certain profit margin while allocating other funds to R&D or acquiring promising small firms to continuously replenish their pipelines.

( Frequent Black Swan events, volatility, and risks coexist

Medical aesthetics and biotech stocks are susceptible to uncertainties such as clinical trial results, competitor moves, policy and regulation changes, and patent disputes. During the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, many vaccine developers’ stocks soared; subsequently, the Fed’s QE measures boosted tech stocks. However, after economic storms, many unprofitable biotech companies’ stocks skyrocketed, while companies with record-high revenues were cut in half.

Investors need patience and risk tolerance to gain returns in this industry.

) Deep government and insurance involvement

Biotech and healthcare are highly regulated industries. Countries have strict rules on procurement and advertising of medical supplies. Most developed nations have insurance systems (like Taiwan’s National Health Insurance) that regulate medical service and drug prices, significantly increasing market complexity.

Leading Companies in the U.S. Medical Market

The U.S. healthcare market can be divided into four major sectors: Pharmaceuticals, Biotechnology, Medical Devices, and Healthcare Services. Here are leading companies in each sector:

Big Pharma Portfolio

Lilly (LLY.US)

Lilly is the largest pharmaceutical company by market cap globally, valued at $842.05 billion in 2024, ranking 10th worldwide. Its biggest markets are North America, accounting for about 60%. The obesity drug market is expected to continue growing in the coming years, making Lilly a must-watch healthcare stock.

Pfizer (PFE.US)

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Pfizer’s stock surged due to vaccine sales, and later it launched oral COVID-19 treatments for mild cases. Every time the U.S. stock market pulls back, it’s an excellent entry point for long-term investors. The company’s stock has shown steady growth.

Johnson & Johnson (JNJ.US)

Similar to Pfizer, J&J’s stock steadily rises and offers generous dividends. Its volatility is relatively low, making it suitable for regular investment or long-term holding, and it’s considered a biotech king. Its long-term upward trend and stability also make it suitable for margin trading strategies.

AbbVie (ABBV.US)

Focuses on immunology, oncology, and virology. Its main profit comes from Humira, approved by the FDA in 2002, a first-line drug for rheumatoid arthritis. It has continuously received FDA approvals to expand indications.

After Humira’s patent expiration, concerns about biosimilars emerged, but AbbVie holds hundreds of patents creating barriers. In 2018, it reached licensing agreements with Pfizer, Amgen, and others to sell biosimilars in the U.S. after 2023 and collect royalties. It continues R&D to seek the next blockbuster drug, making it a good target for deep dips.

Merck (MRK.US)

Originating from a German pharmacy over a century ago, Merck has become a global healthcare solutions provider. Its key product, Keytruda, is used for cancer treatment and is one of the best-selling drugs worldwide. The stock is stable and offers good dividends, making it a solid entry point during market corrections.

UnitedHealth (UNH.US)

A leader in healthcare services, benefiting from aging populations and increasing medical needs in the U.S., with continuous growth in revenue and profit. Its stock has long-term upward momentum, and it offers attractive dividends, with stable cash flow and strong competitiveness.

All these companies are top-tier in the U.S. healthcare market, with strong competitiveness, innovation, solid financials, cash flow, and high investment returns.

Taiwan Medical Aesthetics and Local Healthcare Stock Options

Sinyi Chemical & Pharmaceutical (1720)

A diversified pharmaceutical company involved in Western medicine, health supplements, health foods, medical devices, cosmetics, and milk powder sales. Revenue and net income have grown slowly in recent years, with assets steadily increasing and long-term stable debt ratios. Although its growth momentum is modest and fundamentals are average, its stable dividends make it popular among Taiwan dividend investors.

Hopkings Biotech (1783)

Engaged in manufacturing and sales of biopharmaceuticals, medical devices, skincare products, and chemical materials. Business is divided into two parts: consumer products (cleansers, skincare, medical aesthetics) and biomedical products (bone repair materials, medical injections, ophthalmic drugs). Profits turned positive in 2017, with stable fundamentals in recent years, healthy debt ratios, and low debt levels, making it worth attention.

How Taiwanese Investors Can Trade U.S. Healthcare Stocks

Taiwan investors can trade U.S. stocks through compliant brokerage platforms. For example, via contract trading, investors do not directly hold stocks but track U.S. stock prices, allowing quick long or short positions regardless of market direction.

Advantages include:

• High flexibility, low trading barriers, suitable for short-term strategies
• Support for various order types (stop-loss, take-profit, limit orders)
• Multi-platform support (mobile, web, PC)

The trading process is simplified into five steps: open an account (demo or real) → search for the market → click “contract” to view details → open long or short position → set and submit orders

Many platforms offer demo accounts for practice, allowing traders to follow real-time strategies without depositing funds.

Final Investment Advice

Medical aesthetics and biotech stocks have enormous potential, but Taiwan’s overall capital market still mainly focuses on electronics, and even excellent biotech companies rarely see the multi-tenfold gains seen in the U.S. As pandemic coexistence becomes a government consensus, Taiwanese investors’ attention to biotech stocks has increased, but the U.S. remains the best market for pharmaceuticals.

Many outstanding biopharmaceutical companies have emerged in the U.S., far surpassing Asian counterparts in scale, innovation, and competitiveness, making it easier to find quality investment targets. The pharmaceutical market in Asia is still developing and improving; even with excellent companies, their stock prices and overall performance are not as strong as U.S. healthcare stocks.

This difference stems from capital market disparities, as well as variations in technological standards and investor professionalism. Compared to other sectors, investing in medical aesthetics and healthcare stocks requires a professional understanding of the industry as a whole. Investors interested should pay close attention to U.S. pharmaceutical development, as globally, U.S. healthcare stocks remain the top investment choice today.