Here's How Abbott's Medical Devices Arm Acts as a Growth Catalyst

Abbott Laboratories’ ABT Medical Devices business continues to be one of the company’s strongest growth engines, supported by accelerating momentum in electrophysiology, continued adoption of cardiovascular technologies and the large long-term opportunity in continuous glucose monitoring (CGM).

Electrophysiology appears crucial to Abbott’s near-term growth acceleration. The company launched the next-generation Volt PFA catheter in the United States in May and expects to move from a limited release to a full commercial launch in the coming quarters. 

Diabetes Care is another major pillar of Medical Devices growth. Abbott estimates that roughly 75-80 million people globally could realistically use CGM technology compared with only about 15 million users today. This wide penetration gap gives the company considerable runway even before factoring in future product innovation. 

Abbott received CE Mark for Libre Duo in the second quarter and plans to begin its international rollout in fall 2026. Libre Duo is designed to monitor both glucose and ketones, which could help identify rising ketone levels and reduce the risk of diabetic ketoacidosis. 

The cardiovascular pipeline acts as an additional growth catalyst. Abbott is preparing clinical programs for a balloon-expandable TAVR valve, a leadless conduction-system pacing device based on AVEIR, a Cephea mitral replacement valve and a peripheral IVL device, supporting the company’s growth pipeline into 2029 and beyond. 

Peer Update

Thermo Fisher’s TMO growth strategy remains anchored in high-impact innovation, trusted customer partnerships and its commercial engine. New launches included the Orbitrap Tribrid Apex and Orbitrap Excedion mass spectrometers, the Vanquish Amplify UHPLC system and the PowerFlex Thermal Cycler. 

Thermo Fisher is also expanding AI capabilities across its software portfolio and using AI within its PPI Business System to improve productivity, quality and customer responsiveness. The company is also strengthening customer collaboration through its new U.S. Bioprocess Design Center. The commercial engine supports adoption by linking new technologies with a broad customer base and integrated service offering.

Intuitive Surgical’s ISRG da Vinci platform remains the core driver of its ecosystem and continues to expand through product upgrades, software and instrumentation. Intuitive continues to add digital capabilities that can improve training, workflow and hospital program management. The first phase of more than 100 da Vinci 5 updates targets telepresence, simulation-based training and care-team workflow. 

Ion extends Intuitive beyond surgery into diagnostic, endoluminal procedures focused on lung biopsy. Intuitive has installed Ion in 12 countries outside the United States and continues to build clinical evidence internationally, supporting a multi-year growth path as adoption broadens.

ABT Price Performance

In the past year, Abbott shares have plunged 14.2% compared with the industry’s 24.2% decline. 

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Expensive Valuation

ABT currently trades at a forward 12-month Price-to-Sales (P/S) of 3.69X compared with the industry’s median of 2.81X.

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ABT Stock Estimate Trend

In the past 30 days, ABT’s EPS estimate for 2026 has moved north 0.2%.

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ABT stock currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

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