Jan 28 (Reuters) – Stryker beat Wall Street estimates for fourth-quarter profit and forecast 2025 earnings largely above expectations on Tuesday, fueled by strong demand for its medical and surgical devices. Medical and surgical device makers are riding on a surge in demand as more people in the U.S., particularly older Americans, increasingly opt for elective surgical treatments that were deferred during the COVID-19 pandemic. Stryker forecast adjusted per-share profit for 2025 to be in the range of $13.45 to $13.70, the midpoint of which was above analysts’ average estimate of $13.51, according to data compiled by LSEG. Separately, the medical device maker announced it would sell its U.S. spinal implants business to private investment firm Viscogliosi Brothers to form a separate company, VB Spine. The deal is expected to close in the first half of 2025. The company also disclosed the appointment of a new chief financial officer. Preston Wells, finance chief at its orthopaedics unit, will replace incumbent Glenn Boehnlein, effective April 1. Sales at Stryker’s medical surgery and neurotechnology unit climbed 10.6% to $3.89 billion and at its orthopedics segment they rose 10.8% to $2.55 billion. Earlier this month, the Michigan-based company signed a $4.9 billion deal to buy Inari Medical to expand its portfolio of products to treat vascular diseases. Stryker’s total revenue was $6.44 billion for the three months ended Dec. 31, above analysts’ expectations of $6.36 billion. On an adjusted basis, the company earned $4.01 per share, beating estimates of $3.87. Shares of the company fell 1.6% to $389 in extended trading. (Reporting by Mariam Sunny in Bengaluru; Editing by Sriraj Kalluvila and Shilpi Majumdar)
Stryker projects that its profits for 2025 will exceed expectations due to strong demand for surgical equipment.
