04:03 PM EDT, 09/05/2024 (MT Newswires) -- Health care stocks were declining late Thursday afternoon, with the NYSE Health Care Index dropping 1.7% and the Health Care Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLV) falling 1.5%.

The iShares Biotechnology ETF (IBB) was shedding 0.7%.

In corporate news, McKesson (MCK) shares tumbled 10% after the company said at a health care conference that it expects fiscal Q2 adjusted earnings of $6.70 to $7 per diluted share. Three analysts polled by Capital IQ expect $7.03. Separately, McKesson signed an agreement to sell its Canada-based Rexall and Well.ca businesses to Birch Hill Equity Partners.

Hoth Therapeutics ( HOTH ) shares surged past 83% after the company said it has received Institutional Review Board approval from the Montefiore Medical Center and the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute to proceed with its phase 2a trial of HT-001 to treat skin toxicities linked to epidermal growth factor receptor inhibitors.

Five current and former employees of AstraZeneca ( AZN ) have been detained in China on suspicion of illegal patient data collection and the importation of an unapproved liver cancer drug, media outlets reported Thursday. AstraZeneca ( AZN ) shares slumped 3.3%.

Merck ( MRK ) shares rose 2.3%. The company said it completed negotiations with the pan-Canadian Pharmaceutical Alliance for Welireg on Aug. 30. The alliance negotiates on behalf of Canadian provinces and federal programs, bringing the drug closer to public reimbursement.