HMS Holding Corp. HMSY recently acquired VitreosHealth, a provider of predictive and prescriptive health insights for population risk models, for around $36.5 million in cash. The buyout will enable HMS Holdings to boost Population Health Management (PHM) solution set.Notably, before this buyout, VitreosHealth used to act as a key strategic partner for HMS Holdings and more importantly as the predictive analytics engine for HMS Holdings' Elli.Few Words about EliiElli is a risk intelligence solution, which is part of HMS Holdings’ integrated PHM portfolio. The solution offers both prospective and retrospective analyses that help in detecting high and emerging risks as quickly as the point of member enrollment. On the back of seamless integration with existing population health tools, Elli ensures better care management programs through timely, actionable insights on population and individual members.How is HMS Holdings Poised to Benefit?The buyout will allow the company to leverage VitreosHealth’s prescriptive health insights that will ultimately enhance HMS Holdings’ growing and lucrative PHM suite. This in turn will help the acquirer to estimate, detect and avoid preventable high-cost events.Apart from the abovementioned benefit, the acquisition will help in driving HMS Holdings’ customer value by enhancing risk stratification capabilities with disease-specific predictive models and ensuring faster detection of rising risk members. As a result, improved outcomes through prescriptive interventions will become possible.It is important to note here that the PHM solution set comes under HMS Holdings’ unique suite of Analytical Services apart from PI solutions. PHM (formerly known as Total Population Management) consist of population risk analytics, consumer engagement and care management solutions and has been a significant contributor to the top line.HMS Holdings continues to experience momentum in this business line and expects solid revenue growth on an annual basis driven by introduction of new and improved solutions and expansion of its share of important clients.Bright Prospects of Predictive Analytics MarketAccording to an Analytical Research Cognizance report published by MarketWatch, the global prescriptive and predictive analytics market accounted for $5.72 billion in 2017 and is expected to reach $28.71 billion by 2026 at a CAGR of 19.6%. Growth in demand for global consumer goods, need for comprehensive market analytics and rising demand for cloud-based predictive analytics are some of the important factors driving this market.If we look into the growth prospects of predictive analytics in the healthcare market, then per the report by Allied Market Research, the global predictive analytics in healthcare market raked in $2.20 billion in 2018 and is projected to reach $8.46 billion by 2025 at a CAGR of 21.2%. Lowering excessive costs incurred in healthcare expenditure, increased efficiency in the healthcare industry, and rise in usage of personalized and evidence-based medicine drive the market.Zacks Rank and Price PerformanceHMS Holdings carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). Shares of the company have gained 13% in a year’s time, against the industry’s decline of 11.3%. Meanwhile, the S&P 500 Index rose 2.5% in the same timeframe.Key PicksSome better-ranked stocks from the broader medical space are Baxter International Inc. BAX, Amedisys, Inc. AMED and CONMED Corporation CNMD, each carrying a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.Baxter has a long-term earnings growth rate of 12.8%.Amedisys has a long-term earnings growth rate of 16.3%.CONMED has a long-term earnings growth rate 14.9%.5 Stocks Set to Double Zacks experts released their picks to gain +100% or more in 2020. One is a famous cutting-edge food company that is “hiding in plain sight.” Swamped with competitors and ignored by Wall Street, its stock price floundered. Now, suddenly, it acquired a company that gives it an advantage none of its peers have.Today, see all 5 stocks with extreme growth potential >>Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report HMS Holdings Corp (HMSY): Free Stock Analysis Report Baxter International Inc. (BAX): Free Stock Analysis Report Amedisys, Inc. (AMED): Free Stock Analysis Report CONMED Corporation (CNMD): Free Stock Analysis Report To read this article on Zacks.com click here. Zacks Investment Research