Topic: How To Invest

Pat: I am thinking of investing in Medtronic. What do you think of this stock? Thanks in advance.

Article Excerpt

Medtronic plc, $70.24, symbol MDT on New York (Shares outstanding: 1.4 billion; Market cap: $99.3 billion; www.medtronic.com), is the world’s largest maker of implantable biomedical devices, which it sells in over 120 countries. Medtronic’s Cardiac and Vascular Group supplied 52% of its 2014 sales. The remaining 48% came from its Restorative Therapies Group. The company was formed when U.S.-based Medtronic Inc. acquired Covidien plc for $49.9 billion in the fourth quarter of 2014. The combined firm, called Medtronic plc, is now based in Ireland for tax purposes. The deal was Medtronic’s largest, giving it Covidien’s lineup of hospital supplies, which ranges from surgical staplers to ventilators. The move should help it compete with Johnson & Johnson (symbol JNJ on New York), the world’s leading medical device firm. At the same time, Covidien’s Irish domicile will make it easier for Medtronic to deploy the almost $14 billion in cash it held…