MSFT, GOOGL, FIT A Threat To Amazon's Healthcare Juggernaut?

Amazon’s (NASDAQ:AMZN) focus on delivering quality service at affordable cost is disrupting the multi-trillion dollar healthcare industry.

This Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) stock is integrating Artificial Intelligence (AI), Augmented & Virtual Reality (AR/VR), Machine Learning (ML) and data analytics technologies in its product offerings. This in turn is expected to drive growth.

However, tech giants like Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) , Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) , Alphabet’s (NASDAQ:GOOGL) Google and Fitbit (NYSE:FIT) have also shown keen interest in strengthening their presence in the healthcare industry.

Apple, currently carrying a Zacks Rank #3, is a key competitor in this field primarily on the back of its Watch Series, HealthKit and Health app which help the users in monitoring health. Moreover, the iPhone maker’s strong focus on synchronizing the medical records of patients with their iPhones will aid its health care initiatives. (Read More: Amazon Boosts Presence in Health Care: How is Apple Placed?)

However, it will be foolish to ignore Microsoft, Google and Fitbit’s endeavors in this particular sector. Let’s take a look at their endeavors.

Alphabet’s Growing Healthcare Initiatives

Alphabet recently merged DeepMind Health, a unit of its subsidiary DeepMind, with Google under a new umbrella called Google Health. This move provides the search giant control over the medical records stored in DeepMind’s system.

This Zacks Rank #3 stock has teamed up with American Medical Association (“AMA”) in the beginning of this year to launch a medical and health data challenge. This initiative invites innovative ideas for developing data sharing from health monitoring devices and apps so that patients can easily carry their case history in a computer readable format when visiting a doctor.

Additionally, the search giant’s healthcare division Verily is set to form a joint venture with ResMed to develop a technology that can be utilized for diagnosis and treatment of a widespread sleeping disorder called sleep apnea.

GitHub Acquisition to Boost Microsoft’s Footprint

Microsoft has recently completed the acquisition of GitHub which is an open code repository. This bodes well for the company’s intention of increasing presence in the healthcare sector and EHR market.

The Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) stock intends to provide cost benefits to small clinics with the help of stored APIs and open source codes on GitHub. Notably, migrating all the medical records to an EHR system for small clinics is time consuming and expensive as well. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

Consequently, these clinics can store their data efficiently and safely by leveraging Azure API and the open codes.

Fitness Wearables Hold Promise

According to a report from Allied Market Research, the global market for fitness tracker is projected to reach $62.13 billion by 2023 at a CAGR of 19.6% between 2017 and 2023.

Fitbit, which is a dominant player in the wearable space, is gaining traction due to its huge portfolio of fitness tracker. The company recently made its Fitbit Charge 3 available. The new wearable provides better healthcare management supported by its advanced 24/7 PurePulse heart rate technology and SpO2 sensor. Notably, the company carries a Zacks Rank #3.

Further, it unveiled a new healthcare platform called Fitbit Care that offers health coaching and virtual care through its wearable devices.

Apart from Fitbit, Apple Watch is also performing well in this space. Further, Google is also looking to foray into this market with its Pixel Smartwatch which is expected to be launched soon.

Fitbit, Inc. Price and Consensus

Fitbit, Inc. Price and Consensus | Fitbit, Inc. Quote

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