Tech Taking Personal Healthcare By Storm: Stocks In Focus

Personal health monitoring market is growing on the back of rising adoption of smart scales, smartwatches, fitness trackers and other monitoring devices.

In fact, technology companies like Fitbit (NYSE:FIT) , Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) , Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL) , Garmin (NASDAQ:GRMN) and Koninklijke Philips (NYSE:PHG) are making every effort to expand presence in this rapidly growing space.

Devices like smart scales and smartwatches are gaining traction on their ability to accurately monitor personal health.

Proliferation of Smart Scales Devices

Notably, demand for smart scales is increasing rapidly, thanks to the alarming rise in diabetes.

Reportedly, obese individuals, who are more prone to the disease, account for 30% of the world population. This is largely driving the global smart scales market, which per a report by Esticast, is expected to witness a CAGR of 11.9% between 2018 and 2023.

Fitbit’s recent launch of an affordable Bluetooth smart scales, Aria Air, testifies the fact.

It helps the users keep a track of weight and calculate the body mass index (BMI), which is especially essential for the obese.

The device utilizes Bluetooth to measure body weight and sync the data with the Fitbit app. This will not only enable BMI tracking but will also help users track their sleep trends, nutrition value, activities and heart rate. Further, Aria Air can be integrated with the entire Fitbit ecosystem.

Fitbit’s smart scales portfolio also includes Fitbit Aria scale and Fitbit Aria 2, which offer the same features.

Meanwhile, Garmin has also taken note of the burgeoning need for smart scales. The Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) company offers Garmin Index Smart Scale, which measures weight, BMI, body fat, skeletal muscle mass and much more.

Further, Philips Smart Body Analysis Scale is a product of Koninklijke Philips’ personal health business, which generated €1.28 billion revenues, up 5% year over year in the last reported quarter.

Currently, Koninklijke Philips carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).

Year-to-Date Price Performance

Other Initiatives in Personal Healthcare

Fitbit, which carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold), aims at providing efficient and smart healthcare management solutions to people suffering from diabetes, hypertension and cardiovascular diseases through its latest smart scales.

Along with Aria Air, the company rolled out the latest version of its health and fitness smartwatch called Fitbit Versa 2, which will track sleep score, cardio activities, female health and heart rate, to name a few.

However, Zacks Rank #3 Apple is a key competitor in the personal health field primarily on the back of its Watch Series, HealthKit and Health app. Moreover, the iPhone maker is focusing on synchronizing the medical records of patients with their iPhones under its health care initiatives.

Additionally, the Alphabet’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 common sleeping disorder called sleep apnea.

Further, Verily’s joint venture with Sanofi (PA:SASY) called Onduo targets people living with Type 2 diabetes. The collaboration integrates devices, software, medicine and professional care to provide better treatment and medication.

Notably, Alphabet carries a Zacks Rank #2. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

We believe growing demand for personal health monitoring devices holds promise for these tech giants.

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