Coronavirus fears have triggered volatility, a correction and ultimately a bear market in U.S. stocks in 2020. Many companies have suffered massive price drops, but a handful of stock picks have seen their prices hold up - and in some cases even soar. One such cluster includes pharmaceutical companies and other health-care stocks that are in the race to develop COVID-19 coronavirus vaccines and therapeutics.

You can't overstate the stakes. As of March 11, there were 129,771 officially recorded coronavirus cases worldwide, causing more than 4,700 deaths, across 125 countries. The World Health Organization (WHO) has officially declared this a pandemic, and the threat to life is very real. That has governments increasingly shutting down any mass gatherings of people to slow the spread.

The hope? That they can buy time for pharmaceutical companies to come up with antivirals and vaccines.

More than 30 Big Pharma and small biotechnology companies alike are already involved in COVID-19 coronavirus treatment and vaccine development. But other health-care stocks are rising to the challenge, too: Makers of diagnostic test kits, sanitizers and protective masks are all ramping up to meet unprecedented demand.

Here are 10 health and pharmaceutical companies playing a role in the fight to control the COVID-19 coronavirus. Each of these stocks has the potential for considerable gain, whether it's because they're developing a treatment or their products are in greater need amid the outbreak. And to date, each stock has outperformed the S&P 500 since it started plunging in mid-February, with many posting considerable gains.

Moderna

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Moderna (MRNA, $23.61) is a major player in the race to develop a coronavirus vaccine.

In late February, the biotechnology company began shipping batches of its development-stage COVID-19 vaccine for use in Phase 1 human trials to the National Institutes of Health.