Should You Buy Guardant Health Before Feb. 19?

Guardant Health (NASDAQ: GH) is on the rise, in more ways than one.

Shares of the precision oncology company have skyrocketed over the last six months. Guardant Health has also chalked up several key victories recently, including signing a multi-year collaboration with Merck (NYSE: MRK) to develop companion diagnostics and market new cancer therapies with Guardant's Infinity Smart program.

Although Guardant Health hasn't announced a date for releasing its full-year 2025 and fourth-quarter results, it's likely to provide an update by Feb. 19, 2026. Should you buy this high-flying genomics stock before then?

The case for buying Guardant Health stock soon

Buying stocks at inflection points is often a smart way for investors to make money. And Guardant Health appears to be at an inflection point.

The company revealed in its Q3 earnings call that its core oncology business generated positive free cash flow in the third quarter of 2025, one quarter earlier than its goal. This achievement reflected a significant milestone. Importantly, management expects to remain free cash flow positive in Q4 and throughout 2026 and beyond.

Guardant Health and Path Group are already working together to market the Shield blood test for colorectal cancer screening to more than 250 health systems. The company is also ramping up its partnership with Quest Diagnostics (NYSE: DGX) in the first quarter of 2026 to make Shield available to U.S. physicians and patients served by Quest.

Image source: Getty Images.

To add icing to the cake, Guardant Health recently won U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval for Guardant360 CDx as a companion diagnostic for Pfizer's (NYSE: PFE) Braftovi in combination with Eli Lilly's (NYSE: LLY) Erbitux and chemotherapy in treating BRAF V600E-mutant metastatic colorectal cancer. This approval, which was based on Pfizer's positive results from a Phase 3 study of Braftovi, marked the first FDA approval for Guardant360 CDx in colorectal cancer.

Granted, the Quest Diagnostics and Path Group partnerships won't affect Guardant Health's Q4 results. Neither will the latest FDA approval for Guardant360 CDx. However, investors are forward-looking. Guardant Health's Q4 update could signal brighter prospects ahead and serve as a positive catalyst for its stock.

Why there's no need to rush

While Guardant Health arguably looks more attractive than ever to growth investors, there's probably no need to rush into buying the stock. Guardant Health's Q4 update may be disappointing. I don't expect that will happen, but I wouldn't rule it out, either.

More importantly, the investment thesis for Guardant Health should play out over many years. A few weeks isn't likely to make much of a difference in your long-term returns.

Keith Speights has positions in Pfizer. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Guardant Health, Merck, Pfizer, and Quest Diagnostics. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.