S&P/ASX 200 Health Care Index (ASX: XHJ) shares are 1.2% higher on Tuesday but down 17% over the first quarter of 2026.
Healthcare shares are facing many headwinds, as portfolio managers Joe Koh and Elan Miller from Blackwattle explain:
The sector as a whole has faced multiple headwinds, including currency and tariffs for the large multinationals and labour and cost pressures for the domestic players.
Today, eight of the 10 largest ASX 200 healthcare shares are trading at or close to multi-year or 52-week lows.
Does this present a buying opportunity?
Let's see what the experts say about three of these ASX 200 healthcare shares.
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Sonic Healthcare Ltd (ASX: SHL)
The Sonic Healthcare share price fell to a decade-low of $19.57 last week.
This ASX 200 healthcare share has fallen 9.7% in the year to date (YTD) and 21.3% over the past year.
Last week, Ord Minnett issued a new note on Sonic Healthcare shares.
The broker maintained its hold rating with an unchanged target of $24.
Ord Minnett commented:
Ord Minnett finds it difficult to be constructive on Sonic given its inability to generate meaningful organic growth even after $3.3 billion of acquisitions over the past seven years.
There are undoubtedly some benefits from M&A, but other factors, such as price cuts and customer quotas specific to heathcare in its various markets, along with run-of-the mill costs such as wages and rents, appear to have constrained any meaningful earnings growth.
This view leads us to maintain our Hold recommendation despite the apparent value on offer.
Cochlear Ltd (ASX: COH)
The Cochlear share price tumbled to a six-year low of $160 last week.
This ASX 200 healthcare share has fallen 36.1% YTD and 36.4% over the past year.
Wilsons says Cochlear shares are trading at "a compelling entry point".
The broker commented:
Cochlear trades on a forward P/E multiple of ~26x, representing a >10 year low and a material discount to its 10-year average of ~42x.
We view this as a compelling entry point for a high-quality business ahead of accelerating earnings growth.
Wilsons expects the launch of Cochlear's Nucleus Nexa product to drive sales growth over the medium term.
Cochlear is approaching an inflection point in its earnings growth trajectory, supported by the ongoing global rollout of Nucleus Nexa (approved in mid-2025), which is its most significant product launch in over two decades.
Nexa's upgradeable firmware architecture represents a step-change in implant technology, enabling ongoing improvements in sound processing, connectivity and battery life via its Smart Sync app.
The rollout over the next few years should support ~10% CI unit growth over the medium term, with potential upside toward the mid-teens, while recurring implant upgrades will extend the Nexa's product cycle, supporting a longer duration of growth.
Pro Medicus Ltd (ASX: PME)
The Pro Medicus share price crumbled to a two-year low of $107.75 late last month.
This ASX 200 healthcare share has fallen 49.3% YTD and 43.5% over the past year.
Pro Medicus shares are experiencing a period of correction after a ripsnorting two-year run through to mid 2025.
The Pro Medicus share price hit a record $336 per share in July last year.
Bell Potter has a buy rating and $240 price target on Pro Medicus shares.
The broker explains:
The company continues to announce new contract wins on a regular basis as the drivers of interest in its product offering remain firmly in place. The entire radiology industry is headed to cloud based (off premises) archiving. Put simply, the Visage 7 viewer, Workflow and Archive are the fastest and most advanced tools for the retrieval and viewing of large radiology files.
The platform is immensely scalable and relatively easily installed, providing it with a sustainable competitive advantage over the likes of peers Intelerad, Sectra, Philips and GE Healthcare. The company is conservatively managed and well owned by large institutional investors while the two founders continue to have a controlling stake.
