Here's Why You Should Hold Stryker Stock in Your Portfolio for Now

Stryker SYK exited 2025 with strong momentum, supported by double-digit growth, robust capital demand and expanding robotics adoption. However, rising tariffs, higher interest costs and segment-specific pressures present near-term challenges, even as the company remains well positioned for sustained growth in 2026.

This Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) company’s shares have decreased 7.6% in the past six months compared with the industry’s 19.7% decline. The S&P 500 Index has gained 1.9% in the same time frame.

Stryker is a global leader in medical technology with a portfolio spanning Orthopaedics, MedSurg, and Neurotechnology. The company has a market capitalization of $133.8 billion.

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SYK’s bottom line is anticipated to improve 12.2% over the next five years. Its earnings beat estimates in each of the trailing four quarters, delivering an average surprise of 3.93%.

Let’s delve deeper.

Sustained Double-Digit Organic Growth Reflects Structural Demand Strength: Stryker delivered 11% organic sales growth in the fourth quarter and 10.3% in fiscal 2025, marking its fourth consecutive year of double-digit growth. This performance was broad-based across segments, including MedSurg, Neurotechnology and Orthopaedics, supported by strong procedural volumes and favorable demographics.

Management also highlighted continued demand durability into 2026, underpinned by aging populations and rising surgical interventions. Such consistency, even against tough comps, signals structural market tailwinds and reinforces Stryker’s ability to outperform underlying medtech industry growth rates.

Margin Expansion Despite Tariff Headwinds Highlights Operational Strength: Stryker delivered its second consecutive year of more than 100 basis points operating margin expansion, even while absorbing tariff pressures. This reflects improved business mix, cost optimization and disciplined SG&A management.

Management also emphasized ongoing operational initiatives, such as lean processes and shared services, which are expected to sustain margin expansion through 2028. The ability to expand margins despite external cost pressures demonstrates strong pricing discipline and operational leverage, enhancing earnings quality and long-term profitability outlook.

Strong Capital Demand and Elevated Order Book Provide Revenue Visibility: The company entered 2026 with a robust capital equipment backlog and healthy hospital CapEx environment, particularly in the U.S. Instruments, Endoscopy and Medical divisions posted double-digit growth, driven by strong demand for surgical technologies and capital products. Management highlighted elevated order books and favorable purchasing cycles, suggesting solid near-term revenue visibility. Capital placements (e.g., Mako systems) act as leading indicators for future implant and consumable revenues, reinforcing forward growth visibility and stability.

Downsides

Rising Tariff Burden Could Pressure Margins Going Forward: Stryker expects $400 million in tariff impact in 2026, suggesting a $200 million increase versus 2025. While the company has demonstrated strong mitigation capabilities, sustained tariff pressures could limit future margin expansion or require further cost restructuring. As global supply chains remain exposed to geopolitical dynamics, the ability to fully offset these costs may become increasingly challenging, particularly if inflationary pressures persist or pricing flexibility weakens in certain product categories.

Segment-Level Weakness and Competitive Pressures in Vascular Business: While overall growth remained strong, the Vascular segment showed relative weakness, with only 4.3% U.S. organic growth, impacted by competitive pressures in the ischemic business. Although hemorrhagic products are performing well, continued underperformance in ischemic offerings indicates portfolio gaps and competitive intensity.

Early-stage product launches (e.g., new catheters) may take time to scale, creating near-term growth variability. Persistent competitive pressure in key subsegments could limit overall vascular segment contribution to consolidated growth.

International Growth Constrained by Regulatory Delays and Capital Volatility: International markets lagged the United States,partly due to regulatory delays, such as EU MDR approvals, which have slowed product launches. A softer capital environment in Europe introduced quarter-to-quarter volatility. These factors limit near-term growth realization despite strong long-term opportunity in emerging markets.

Continued regulatory bottlenecks or delayed product rollouts could hinder international expansion and margin improvement, especially given the importance of global diversification to Stryker’s growth strategy.

Estimate Trend

SYK has been witnessing a negative estimate revision trend for fiscal 2026. In the past 30 days, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for earnings has decreased 1 cent to $17.59 per share.

The consensus mark for second-quarter fiscal 2026 revenues is pegged at $80.71 billion, indicating a 7% improvement from the year-ago reported actuals. The bottom-line estimate is pinned at $4.81, implying year-over-year growth of 8.8%.

Stryker Corporation Price

Stryker Corporation price | Stryker Corporation Quote

Stocks to Consider

Some better-ranked stocks in the broader medical space are Intuitive Surgical ISRG, Align Technology ALGN and Cardinal Health CAH.

Intuitive Surgical, carrying a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) at present, has an estimated long-term growth rate of 15.7%. ISRG’s earnings surpassed estimates in each of the trailing four quarters, with the average surprise being 13.24%. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

Intuitive Surgical’s shares have gained 10.9% against the industry’s 6.8% decline over the past six months.

Align Technology, carrying a Zacks Rank #2 at present, has an estimated long-term growth rate of 10.1%. ALGN’s earnings surpassed estimates in each of the trailing four quarters, with the average surprise being 6.16%.

ALGN’s shares have climbed 27.8% compared with the industry’s 16.7% growth over the past six months.

Cardinal Health, currently carrying a Zacks Rank of 2, has an estimated long-term growth rate of 15%. CAH’s earnings surpassed estimates in each of the trailing four quarters, with the average surprise being 9.3%.

CAH’s shares have rallied 45% compared with the industry’s 16.7% growth over the past six months.

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Stryker Corporation (SYK): Free Stock Analysis Report

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Align Technology, Inc. (ALGN): Free Stock Analysis Report

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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).

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