Best of the health care “theme” funds

Article Excerpt

Sector, or “theme”, funds are not without risk, but they are much safer than investing in one or two companies in more volatile fields, such as health care and biotechnology. If you choose to invest in sector funds, you should limit your investment to modest amounts. Above all, invest only in those with proven management and high-quality holdings. Here are updates on two we like. Both have outperformed the S&P 500 index by a wide margin over the past year. TD HEALTH SCIENCES FUND $13.54 (CWA Rating: Speculative) (TD Asset Management, P.O. Box 7500, Station A, Toronto, Ontario M5W 1P9. 1-800-463-3863; Web site: www.tdcanadatrust.ca. No load — deal directly with the bank) mainly invests in large-capitalization health-care stocks and earlier-stage biotechnology shares in the U.S. The fund’s managers believe these firms will benefit from increased health spending spurred by an aging population. TD Health Sciences Fund’s top holdings include Gilead Sciences, Alexion Pharmaceuticals, Teva Pharmaceutical, Baxter International, Vertex Pharmaceuticals, Medco Health Solutions, Wyeth,…