It’s no secret that healthcare spending continues to rise.
But what’s most amazing is the pace of spending growth. Since the 1960s, medical costs have risen a staggering 2000%. This compares to just a 700% jump in inflation over that time. Pushing the clock back to the year 2000 and the pace of spending increases hasn’t slowed down either. In that time, prescription drug costs have grown 69%, hospital care expenses by 60% and physician & clinical services has jumped 23%. All in all, healthcare spending in America is quickly rising to nearly 20% of the total GDP – a significantly higher proportion than any other major economy.
But as they say, “If you can’t beat them, join them.” And that is just what our leading medical devices Best Dividend Stocks List pick is doing.
As one of the largest medical device firms in the world, our new pick provides plenty of gear needed for doctors and hospitals to treat patients. This covers everything from one-time-use basic appliances to higher-tech implantables and heart pumps. The best part is our pick has been able to leverage its size to play the growing role of healthcare in our economy. This has continued to provide plenty of cash flows and dividends for its investors for decades.
And with a dose of high-tech new devices and a mega-sized M&A war-chest, our pick still has plenty of growth potential down the road. For investors looking to play the continued rise in healthcare spending, our pick could be the top play.
To summarize, here are five reasons why you should own this stock:
- Operates in over 160 countries with reported revenues of nearly $30 billion in 2017.
- Has managed to grow those sales at an average annual rate of over 12% over the last five years.
- Smartly uses M&A and asset sales to prune and build its portfolio to drive growth.
- Has increased its annual dividend payout for more than 40 consecutive years – with a big 9% jump coming over the summer.
- Healthy payout ratio of 39% and a yield of 2.07%.
Check out our original pick here.
