Here's Why Henry Schein Is Worth Adding To Your Portfolio

Henry Schein Inc. (NASDAQ:HSIC) , the worldwide distributor of health care products and services is on a healthy growth trajectory of late. Over the last six months, the stock has been consistently trading ahead of the S&P 500 Index. It has rallied 19.9% in this period compared with the market’s mere 8% gain. The stock has a market cap of $14.5 billion.

Over major part of this period, the company’s share price outperformed the Zacks categorized Medical - Instruments sub-industry. Recently the broader industry has advanced to reach a higher level. However we believe, Henry Schein with its strong growth parameters is expected to match that level soon.

With solid growth prospects, this Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) stock is an attractive pick at present. Let’s find out whether the recent positive trend is a sustainable one or is it just a short-term gain?

Key Positives

A stellar first-quarter 2017 result was a major market sentiment booster, thanks to the strong year-over-year growth in all its four operating segments.

Henry Schein is well-positioned to gain from an extensive global foothold and diverse channel mix. The company’s consistent strong share gains in both the North American and overseas markets along with solid revenues further raise investors’ optimism on the stock.

Notably, the company’s animal health business is gaining traction on the back of tailwinds in the North American as well as overseas markets. The burgeoning demand for animal health products in the U.S. should accelerate growth. The company’s medical segment also continues to improve as it gains traction in large group practices including those within health systems.

Market is visibly positive about Henry Schein’s recent announcement to enter into a three-year agreement with Dentsply Sirona to broaden its digital dentistry product offering with the highly respected global brands associated with the latter.

Henry Schein will distribute Dentsply Sirona’s full-line dental equipment in the U.S. Besides, the company will continue to represent products from Planmeca, 3Shape, 3M as well as the dental equipment and consumer product lines of its longstanding partner, Danaher (NYSE:DHR) under the KaVo Kerr brands.

During the first quarter of 2017, the company inked a deal with medical device developer Rijuven Corp for distributing the latter’s cardiovascular device in the U.S.,

The company has significantly gained from the certifying CE Mark approval for da Vinci X in Europe. The stock has further received a boost with the recent U.S. FDA approval of the same. The company has been riding high on its niche acquisitions. Its robust acquisition strategy helps it to pursue targets that provide access to additional product lines.

In the beginning of 2017, Henry Schein had penetrated the Brazilian animal health market with a 51% investment in Tecnew, a privately held distributor of animal health products. Around the same time, the company also declared to acquire Southern SAS.

Henry Schein’s dental business is expected to gain from SAS’ controlled and non-controlled pharmaceuticals as well as the surgical supplies.

Key Picks

Other top-ranked medical stocks include Align Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ:ALGN) , Inogen, Inc. (NASDAQ:INGN) and Accelerate Diagnostics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AXDX) . While Align Technology and Inogen sport a Zacks Rank #1(Strong Buy), Accelerate Diagnostics carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

Align Technology has an expected long-term adjusted earnings growth of almost 24.1%. The stock has roughly added 32.3% over the last three months.

Inogen has a long-term expected earnings growth rate of 17.5%. The stock has approximately added 26.2% over the last three months.

Accelerate Diagnostics has an expected long-term adjusted earnings growth of 30%. The stock has roughly gained 24.5% over the last three months.

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