03:45 PM EST, 11/21/2025 (MT Newswires) -- Health care stocks were higher late Friday afternoon, with the NYSE Health Care Index and the Health Care Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLV) each rising 2.4%.

The iShares Biotechnology ETF (IBB) climbed 2.4%.

In corporate news, AstraZeneca ( AZN ) shares rose 3.1% after it said Friday it is planning a $2 billion investment to expand its manufacturing footprint in Maryland as part of its $50 billion investment roadmap.

Pfizer ( PFE ) and Astellas Pharma said Friday the US Food and Drug Administration approved Padcev in combination with Merck's ( MRK ) Keytruda as a perioperative treatment for adults with muscle-invasive bladder cancer who cannot take cisplatin chemotherapy. Pfizer ( PFE ) shares increased 2.7%, and Merck ( MRK ) was up 3.6%.

Novo Nordisk ( NVO ) and Eli Lilly ( LLY ) are set to begin offering their popular GLP-1 drugs to employers at fixed prices, avoiding rebates and fees that typically arise with traditional drug sales channels, Bloomberg reported. Lilly's Zepbound and Novo Nordisk's ( NVO ) Wegovy will be sold to companies through digital health firm Waltz Health starting Jan. 1, the report said. Novo shares added 0.3%, and Eli Lilly ( LLY ) rose 2.1%.

Sangamo Therapeutics ( SGMO ) shares jumped 11% after it said Friday the US Food and Drug Administration accepted its request for rolling review of a biologics license application for isaralgagene civaparvovec to treat adults with Fabry disease.