Johnson & Johnson (JNJ), Express Scripts Holding Company (ESRX), Gilead Sciences, Inc. (GILD): Three Great Buy-and-Hold Health-Care Stocks

3. Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD)
You might be surprised to see a biotech stock included in the mix of buy-and-hold ideas — especially one with several drugs losing patent protection in the next few years. I think that Gilead Sciences is one to keep for the long haul, though.

Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD)’s gains over the past 20 years rival those of Express Scripts. It currently dominates the HIV/AIDS drug market with products including Atripla, Stribild, Truvada, and Viread. The bad news is that Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD) faces the expiration of patents on some of these drugs over the next decade and increasing threats of competition, particularly from ViiV Healthcare, a partnership formed by GlaxoSmithKline plc (ADR) (NYSE:GSK) and Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE).

While GlaxoSmithKline plc (ADR) (NYSE:GSK) and  Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE) could grab some market share, I think Gilead will maintain its leadership in HIV/AIDS. The company also appears to be poised to be a major player in the lucrative hepatitis C virus, or HCV, market.

Past performance …
Nearly every financial document you come across will include a familiar phrase along the lines of “past performance is not necessarily indicative of future results.” It’s absolutely true, of course. Just because any stock performed well in the past doesn’t mean they will automatically continue to do well. However, it is reasonable to look at a company’s business model and conclude that the probability is pretty good that the model is sustainable into the future.

I wouldn’t attempt to predict how much Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ), Express Scripts Holding Company (NASDAQ:ESRX), and Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD) shares will increase (or decrease) over the next 10 to 20 years. However, I like the business models for these three companies and suspect that they will all be successful over the long run. Buy and hold? You bet.

The article 3 Great Buy-and-Hold Health-Care Stocks originally appeared on Fool.com and is written by Keith Speights.

Fool contributor Keith Speights has no position in any stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool recommends Express Scripts, Gilead Sciences, and Johnson & Johnson and owns shares of Express Scripts and Johnson & Johnson.

Copyright © 1995 – 2013 The Motley Fool, LLC. All rights reserved. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.