Morgan Stanley Prefers GoodRx and Healthcare Tech Over Managed Care for 2026

Morgan Stanley told clients it prefers GoodRx (GDRX) and a select group of healthcare-technology names to traditional managed-care stocks as it looks toward 2026. The firm’s analysis points to stronger secular growth, more attractive valuations and clearer upside for market-beating returns from digital health platforms and pharmacy-focused businesses.

Analysts at Morgan Stanley argue that healthcare technology companies, including pharmacy-savings platforms like GoodRx, are better positioned to capitalize on rising adoption of digital tools, data-driven care and value-based consumer offerings. GoodRx, the widely used prescription savings and telehealth platform, benefits from multiple revenue streams—prescription coupons, membership programs, telehealth visits and digital advertising—that can scale faster than the fee-for-service economics that constrain parts of the managed-care industry.

By contrast, Morgan Stanley highlights mounting margin pressure and regulatory uncertainty facing many managed-care operators. Payment compression, slower-than-expected medical-loss-ratio improvements and the complexities of navigating Medicare and Medicaid reimbursement changes could limit earnings upside in that sector. The firm sees managed care as more vulnerable to near-term policy and utilization shocks, reducing its relative appeal for the 2026 time horizon.

The investment case for healthcare tech rests on secular tailwinds: increased consumer use of digital health tools, growing demand for cost transparency, and the monetization opportunities around health data and advertising. Morgan Stanley expects these forces to translate into higher revenue growth and multiple expansion for winners in the space—especially companies with demonstrable user engagement and diversified monetization.

That said, the bank cautions investors about execution risks, competition and regulatory oversight—factors that can affect individual stocks even when the thematic outlook is favorable. Morgan Stanley recommends selective exposure, emphasizing names with strong unit economics, clear paths to profitability and durable customer retention.

Overall, the firm’s 2026 view favors nimble, technology-enabled healthcare companies such as GoodRx over traditional managed-care names, based on a combination of growth potential, valuation optionality and resilience to sector-specific headwinds.