Pharmaceutical firms are modern-day miracle workers.

Not too long ago, leeches were still used for bloodletting and whiskey doubled as anesthesia. Now ailments like diabetes and colon cancer, once death sentences, can be treated or managed.

Thank profit-seeking pharmaceutical companies for the proliferation and availability of medicines.

Given the importance of drugs and an aging Baby Boomer population, one would think that investing in pharmaceutical companies would be a lay-up. Well, that already happened in the 1990s.

This past decade, many pharma firms were persistent under-performers. Pfizer was a $40 stock in 2002. It hasn't traded above $30 since 2004.

Many investors held on for the difficult ride, counting their dividends even as unrealized capital losses far outweighed the modest income.

Times have once again changed.

As risk assets worldwide thrash amid political uncertainty in the U.S. and abroad and commodities, emerging markets, foreign currencies and other former leaders mark new multi-month lows, drug makers are showing leadership among equities not seen since the Clinton years.

That many drug makers, not just a few isolated strays, are strong lends credibility to the notion a sector-wide revaluation is underway.

Eli Lilly

Eli Lilly (LLY) is a worldwide leader in treatment for diabetes and mental health disorders, propelling it to more than $23 billion in revenue worldwide.

Prozac, Methadone and Cialis are among the company's most well-known treatments. Long before the U.S. Food and Drug Administration was created, the company's founder insisted on a quality-control regime that only sold drugs to those patients who had first seen a doctor. The stock recently challenged multi-year highs, even as its yield approaches 5%.

Pfizer

Founded in Brooklyn in the 1850s, Pfizer (PFE) is behind some of the most widely-used and life improving drug therapies for arthritis, cancer, hypertension and Alzheimer's disease. Lipitor, a cholesterol fighter, was the world's top selling branded medicine in 2010 and the biggest selling drug of all-time. (The drug recently went generic.)

Pfizer's business also includes a wide variety of non-prescription products such as ChapStick, Advil and Preparation H.Already challenging a 3-year peek, the stock yields 4.2%.

GlaxoSmithKline

GlaxoSmithKline (GSK), the world's third-largest drug company, manufactures treatments for osteoporosis, pulmonary disease, bipolar disorder and heart failure and even a new vaccine for malaria, which still kills nearly 1 million people a year. Many products like Beano, Tums, Sensodyne toothpaste and Nicorette gum are also sold over-the-counter for more everyday concerns.

The stock yields 4.8% and still trades roughly 25% below its 2001 price.

iShares DJ U.S. Pharmaceutical Index vs. S&P 500

A wide variety of mutual funds are also available, including the Global Big Pharma ETN (DRGS), a recently launched exchange-traded-note targeting 16 of the largest global drug manufacturers through equally weighed positions. For those opting for broader exposure, iShares Dow Jones U.S. Pharmaceutical Index Fund (IHE) holds 39 stocks, including medium and large cap. Amid a difficult year for risk, it's up nearly 15%.

—Jonathan Hoenig is managing member at Capitalistpig Hedge Fund LLC