03:29 PM EST, 12/26/2024 (MT Newswires) -- Health care stocks edged up late Thursday afternoon, with the NYSE Health Care Index up 0.1% and the Health Care Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLV) fractionally higher.

The iShares Biotechnology ETF (IBB) rose 0.4%.

In corporate news, Assembly Biosciences ( ASMB ) shares rose 2.5%. The company said Thursday that an ongoing phase 1b trial of its investigational antiviral drug ABI-4334 showed "encouraging" safety and efficacy results in people with chronic hepatitis B virus.