03:19 PM EDT, 03/16/2026 (MT Newswires) -- Health care stocks advanced late Monday afternoon, with the NYSE Health Care Index up 0.8% and the State Street Health Care Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLV) increasing 0.6%.

The iShares Biotechnology ETF (IBB) gained 0.9%.

In corporate news, Novartis ( NVS ) shares rose 0.8% after its subsidiary Novartis Capital filed a prospectus with the US Securities and Exchange Commission on Monday for eight tranches of notes to repay a bridge loan used to finance the acquisition of Avidity Biosciences. Novartis ( NVS ) agreed to buy Avidity in October for $12 billion.