FutuFinance APP noted that President-elect Trump chose television personality Dr. Mehmet Oz as the director of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) in the United States, resulting in an increase in health insurance company stocks on Wednesday.

Notable winners include UnitedHealth (UNH.US), Humana (HUM.US), and Alignment Healthcare (ALHC.US), which have significant businesses in the Medicare Advantage plan (private versions of government-supported insurance) market.

Due to positive comments from Wall Street analysts on Trump's latest selection, stocks of other managed healthcare companies CVS Health (CVS.US), Centene (CNC.US), and Clover Health (CLOV.US) also rose.

If approved by the Senate, Oz will oversee CMS under the supervision of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, nominated by Trump.

JPMorgan analyst Lisa Gill noted that Dr. Oz's recent comments support the Medicare Advantage (MA plan). Gill quoted the famous surgeon's words during the 2022 Pennsylvania Senatorial campaign failure: "We can expand Medicare Advantage plans. These plans are popular among the elderly, consistently provide quality care, and have incentive measures to reduce costs."

"We believe this aligns with our expectations that the CMS under Republican control will support the MA plan," said the analyst, pointing out that this will benefit companies like UnitedHealth, Humana, CVS Health, and Elevance Health.

Royal Bank of Canada Capital Markets and BMO Capital Markets have expressed roughly similar views.

Royal Bank of Canada analyst Ben Hendrix pointed out that given Oz's past views indicating support for expanding the MA program in the medical care sector, his potential appointment could be a positive sign for Medicare Advantage stocks.

Hendrix wrote: "While we believe the likelihood of shifting towards a 'Q&M dental advantage' system is low, Oz's past affinity towards Massachusetts strengthens our expectations for a more favorable regulatory environment for insurance companies in the future."

BMO analyst Evan Seigerman added: "Although Oz has been controversial and a prominent television personality, his stance on expanding medical insurance coverage and addressing... pricing challenges may be beneficial for the industry in the long run."