Health care stocks are a rare bright spot in this year's downturn, with a large number of investors flocking to large health care stocks such as McKesson, Cardinal Health and Eli Lilly and Co to build defensive positions amid a general market slump.

In early November, the rally in health-care stocks began to reverse, possibly because some investors sold at a profit after the stock rally. Despite some nervousness, there are still opportunities in the health care industry.

Barron Weekly on exchange-traded funds that track the market's health care stocks$Health Care Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLV.US)$The stocks were screened for health-care stocks that Wall Street analysts believe have the most room to rise and whose shares are now well below the average target price.

As of Monday's close, the health care select industry index, ETF, has fallen 5.4% so far this year, and the ETF stock has made a significant difference between outperforming and underperforming the s & p 500.

Barron Weekly limits its selection to large-cap stocks with a market capitalization of more than $20 billion. To ensure that the average target price represents a wide range of analysts' views, Barron Weekly also limits its selection to companies with at least 10 analysts giving a target price.

The target price can be said to be a guess and has different meanings for different analysts, but the average target price allows investors to understand Wall Street's overall view of the direction of a stock.

The selected stocks do not include health care stocks that have risen sharply this year, but health care stocks that currently outperform the S & P 500. As of Monday, the s & p 500 was down more than 15% this year.

Only 6 health care stocks with more room to rise.

Animal health company$Zoetis (ZTS.US)$It is down 40 per cent this year, 45 per cent below the average target price of $212.80. Zoetis Inc's share price rose sharply during the epidemic, rising more than 80 per cent between the end of 2019 and the end of 2021, giving up most of its gains this year.

William Blair analyst Brandon Vazquez (Brandon Vazquez) wrote in a research note in early November that despite the poor overall economic environment, demand for pet health remains strong.

"despite Zoetis Inc's poor performance in the most recent quarter, management pointed out that demand for pet care has not slowed down and that the business can remain resilient even if the macroeconomic environment becomes more difficult," Vazquez wrote. "

The other stock that has been screened produces products such as heart valves.$Edwards Lifesciences (EW.US)$The company's share price is down 43% this year. The average target price given by analysts is $92.51, about 26% higher than the recent share price of $73.51. Edwards Lifesciences shares tumbled 15.4 per cent in a single day at the end of October, mainly due to lower-than-expected revenue. The company bought back its shares after the share price fell.

Health insurance company$Centene (CNC.US)$It is down 0.4% this year, and the share price is about 23% below the average target price. Medical device company$Medtronic (MDT.US)$The share price is down about 20% this year, 22% below the average target price. Baxter International, which sells dialysis machines and other equipment for the treatment of kidney disease$Baxter International Inc (BAX.US)$It is down about 38% this year and is now about 19% below its average target price of $64. Drug retailer$CVS Health (CVS.US)$It is down 5.8% this year, and the share price is about 20% below the average target price.