Makers of medical device implants and diagnostic products proved health care was no monolith after broadly outperforming the U.S. market and their health care brethren in 2018. But 2019 is shaping up quite differently through the first day of trading amid a spotlight from a variety of investment banks.

Focused on creating the next frontier of surgery, Johnson & Johnson (NYSE: JNJ), today announced that Ethicon, Inc., entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Auris Health, Inc. for approximately $3.4 billion in cash.

Every 40 seconds, someone in the United States suffers a stroke and available therapies, such as clot busting drugs or clot removal devices, are focused on limiting the extent of brain damage.

  A French court canceled the license for one of Monsanto’s glyphosate-based weedkillers on Tuesday over safety concerns, placing an immediate ban on Roundup Pro 360 in the latest legal blow to the Bayer-owned business.