Medical-Device Stocks Surge Most Since 2020 After J&J Report

(Bloomberg) — Shares of Intuitive Surgical Inc., Abiomed Inc. and other medical-device makers rallied Tuesday after Johnson & Johnson reported stronger-than-expected sales from that division of the company.

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The S&P Supercomposite Health Care Equipment Index rose 3.5%, marking its biggest gain since April 2020 and offsetting some of the underperformance this year that followed the slowdown of the pandemic. The iShares U.S. Medical Devices ETF also gained the most since April 2020.

The gains were set off by the quarterly report from pharmaceutical giant Johnson & Johnson, which is one of the earlier companies to release during the slew of coming results. As a result, the company’s better-than-expected device sales are seen as a good sign for others in the industry. Johnson & Johnson’s worldwide medical-devices sales were $6.97 billion, up 6% from a year earlier and above the consensus analyst estimate of $6.66 billion.

“We believe JNJ’s MedTech results are a positive indicator and expect most of our companies under coverage to beat consensus estimates in 1Q22,” Needham & Co. analyst Mike Matson wrote in a note.

Within medical devices, orthopedics was highlighted by analysts as a particular area of strength.

Wells Fargo’s Larry Biegelsen wrote that the results indicate orthopedics sales for Stryker Corp. and Zimmer Biomet Holdings Inc. could come in higher than expected. Stryker shares rose 4.9%.

(Updates prices and chart to market close throughout.)

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