Overview of Stryker Corporation - JustAnswer



Research PaperXXXXXXXXXDavenport UniversityFINC 620Professor James GarvinOctober 16, 2012Table of Contents TOC \o "1-3" \h \z \u Overview of Stryker Corporation PAGEREF _Toc338005643 \h 3Stryker’s 2011 Financial Statements PAGEREF _Toc338005644 \h 5Stryker’s Income Statement PAGEREF _Toc338005645 \h 5Stryker’s Balance Sheet PAGEREF _Toc338005646 \h 6Stryker’s Cash Flow Statement PAGEREF _Toc338005647 \h 7Stryker’s Statement of Owners’ Equity PAGEREF _Toc338005648 \h 8Summary of Stryker’s Financial Statements PAGEREF _Toc338005649 \h 9Ratio Calculation and Analysis PAGEREF _Toc338005650 \h 11Stryker’s Key Statistics PAGEREF _Toc338005651 \h 19Forecast of Several Key Variables PAGEREF _Toc338005652 \h 21Other Information PAGEREF _Toc338005653 \h 23Recommendation Regarding the Future of Stryker PAGEREF _Toc338005654 \h 26References PAGEREF _Toc338005655 \h 27 Overview of Stryker CorporationStryker Corporation (Stryker) is a medical device, implant, instrument and technology company that includes a variety of divisions and products. They employ over 21,000 people worldwide, sell their products in over 100 countries, have 14 division headquarters, have 29 manufacturing and R&D locations, and have three other locations (Company Overview, 2012, p. 6). The company was founded by Dr. Homer Stryker in 1941 (Company Overview, 2012, p. 3). The three main divisions of Stryker are the Reconstructive, Medical & Surgical, and Neurotechnology & Spine. The Reconstructive division consists of hip and knee implants, trauma and extremities hardware, foot and ankle hardware, joint preservation devices, and orthobiologics and biosurgery equipment. The Medical & Surgical division is made up of power tools and surgical accessories, computer-assisted surgery devices, endoscopic surgical instruments, integrated communication devices, stretchers, beds and EMS equipment, and reprocessing and remanufacturing techniques. The Neurotechnology & Spine sector is comprised of craniomaxillofacial implants, interventional spine devices; neurosurgical, spine and ENT instruments; neurovascular equipment, and spinal implants (Company Overview, 2012, p. 4-5). Worldwide, Stryker owns about 37% of the market share for the Reconstructive division, 48% of the market share for the Medical & Surgical division, and 16% of the Neurotechnology & Spine division (Owens & Becker, 2012, p. 14). They also conduct about 37% of their sales outside the U.S. (Owens & Becker, 2012, p. 11). This makes Stryker a large multinational corporation.The new President and CEO of Stryker was announced on October 1, 2012 and is Kevin A. Lobo (Weaver & Lublin, 2012). Lobo has been with Stryker since April 2011. Prior to that he spent nine years with one of Stryker’s top competitors, Johnson & Johnson. The 8-K SEC filing describes the details of Lobo’s personal work history and current base salary at Stryker Corporation which is $1 million annual with a targeted annual bonus of 130% of the base salary in addition to various stock options (“Departure of Officers,” 2012). The Interim Chief Executive Officer and Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of Stryker was Curt R. Hartman. Hartman took over on February 8, 2012 when the then current President and CEO of Stryker, Steve MacMillan, resigned (The Innovation Advantage: Stryker, 2011, p. 5). The company headquarters is in Kalamazoo, Michigan and Stryker has sites in North and South America, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Asia, and the Pacific ("Stryker Worldwide Sites," 2010). There are other division headquarters located throughout the world. Stryker’s IPO was on May 2, 1979 with NASDAQ. On July 24, 1997 Stryker moved from NASDAQ to the NYSE ("Company History," 2011). With its vast array of products, Stryker is a large contender in the medical technology sector. Some of their top competitors are Johnson & Johnson’s DePuy Orthopedics Inc., Zimmer Holdings Inc. (Zimmer), Biomet Inc., and Smith & Nephew. Biomet and DePuy are both privately held companies. Between Zimmer and Smith & Nephew, Zimmer is the most similar in product divisions to Stryker. Therefore throughout this paper, Zimmer will be used as a benchmark comparison. Stryker’s 2011 Financial Statements24892095250Table 1Stryker’s Income Statement00Table 1Stryker’s Income Statement1168404344035From “Stryker Corporation and Subsidiaries: Consolidated Statements of Earnings,” 2011, Stryker Corporation 2011 Annual Report, p. 20.(Dollar amounts in millions except per share amounts or as otherwise specified.)00From “Stryker Corporation and Subsidiaries: Consolidated Statements of Earnings,” 2011, Stryker Corporation 2011 Annual Report, p. 20.(Dollar amounts in millions except per share amounts or as otherwise specified.)96520-57150Table 2Stryker’s Balance Sheet00Table 2Stryker’s Balance Sheet1739906609715From “Stryker Corporation and Subsidiaries: Consolidated Balance Sheets,” 2011, Stryker Corporation 2011 Annual Report, p. 21.(Dollar amounts in millions except per share amounts or as otherwise specified.)00From “Stryker Corporation and Subsidiaries: Consolidated Balance Sheets,” 2011, Stryker Corporation 2011 Annual Report, p. 21.(Dollar amounts in millions except per share amounts or as otherwise specified.)64770-139700Table 3Stryker’s Cash Flow Statement00Table 3Stryker’s Cash Flow Statement596906340475From “Stryker Corporation and Subsidiaries: Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows,” 2011, Stryker Corporation 2011 Annual Report, p. 23.(Dollar amounts in millions except per share amounts or as otherwise specified.)00From “Stryker Corporation and Subsidiaries: Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows,” 2011, Stryker Corporation 2011 Annual Report, p. 23.(Dollar amounts in millions except per share amounts or as otherwise specified.)8382061595Table 4Stryker’s Statement of Owners’ Equity00Table 4Stryker’s Statement of Owners’ Equity8382027940From “Stryker Corporation and Subsidiaries: Consolidated Statements of Shareholders’ Equity,” 2011, Stryker Corporation 2011 Annual Report, p. 22.(Dollar amounts in millions except per share amounts or as otherwise specified.)00From “Stryker Corporation and Subsidiaries: Consolidated Statements of Shareholders’ Equity,” 2011, Stryker Corporation 2011 Annual Report, p. 22.(Dollar amounts in millions except per share amounts or as otherwise specified.) Summary of Stryker’s Financial StatementsAccording to Stryker’s income statement shown in Table 1, total revenues in 2011 were $8.307 billion while cost of goods sold was $2.811 billion, leaving a gross profit margin of $5.496 billion or 66.16 percent of total revenue. Total operating expenses were $3.810 billion, or 45.86 percent of total revenue, leaving $1.686 billion in EBT. After taking out taxes, the net income was $1.345 billion, or 16.19 percent of total revenues. Diluted EPS of common stock was $3.45, and total shares outstanding for diluted stock was 389.5 million. Referring to Table 2 which shows Stryker’s balance sheet, total assets were $12.405 billion. Current assets were $7.211 billion in 2011, or 58.13 percent of total assets. The net for property, plant and equipment was $.888 billion, or 7.16 percent of total assets. Goodwill accounted for $2.072 billion, or about 16.7 percent of total assets. Other intangibles, which would included Stryker’s patents, was at $1.442 billion or 11.62 percent of total assets. Focusing on the current asset categories, cash and cash equivalents were $905 million, which accounts for 12.55 percent of current assets. AR was $1.417 billion in 2011, which is about 19.65 percent of current assets. As for a non-operating expense, marketable securities was at $2.513 billion, or about 34.85 percent of current assets. Total inventories, which includes raw materials, works in progress and finished goods, totaled $1.283 billion, which is 17.79 percent of current assets. On the other side of the balance sheet equation, cumulative liabilities for 2011 were $4.722 billion, or about 38.07 percent of liabilities plus owners’ equity. Current liabilities were $1.828 billion in 2011, or 38.71 percent of total liabilities. Long-term debt was about $1.751 billion and accounted for about 37.08 percent of total liabilities. Total shareholders’ equity was $7.683 billion, or about 61.93 percent of liabilities plus owners’ equity. Retained earnings were $6.479 billion in 2011, or about 84.33 percent of total shareholders’ equity. Liabilities plus owners’ equity was $12.405 billion, which is equal to the total assets amount of $12.405 billion.As referenced in Table 3 which shows Stryker’s statement of cash flows for 2011, net earnings were $1.345 billion, which is in accordance with the amount of net earnings listed on the income statement. Net cash from operating activities was $1.434 billion. Cash used in investing activities was $2.135 billion. Looking at a non-operating asset, the net profit earned on marketable securities was $90 million, or about 1.33 percent. For financing activities, $161 million of cash flows was used. Since Stryker is a global company, they have to deal with exchange rates. Stryker made $9 million in 2011 from exchanging currency. Cash and equivalents at the beginning of the year was $1.758 billion and at the end of the year was $905 million.Table 4 shows Stryker’s statement of equity for 2011. Again listed net earnings for 2011 were $1.345 billion, which is in alignment with the income statement and statement of cash flows. There was an issuance of 1.6 million shares of common stock. Cash dividends were $0.75 per common stock share. There was also a repurchase of 11.8 million shares of common stock. There was a final balance of $6.479 billion in retained earnings in 2011. This is in congruence with the retained earnings amount listed on the balance sheet. Ratio Calculation and AnalysisTable 5Five Fiscal Years of Financial Ratios: Stryker Corporationa vs. Zimmer Holdings, Inc.bFinancial Ratios20112010200920082007Liquidity of Short-Term AssetsCurrent Ratio Stryker3.9454.7554.0613.4063.680 Zimmer3.7794.2843.9642.8252.782Cash Ratio Stryker1.8702.7292.0511.5021.809 Zimmer1.4111.3301.0980.2760.620Quick Ratio Stryker3.2434.0963.4062.7543.082 Zimmer2.7062.9512.6421.6211.810Long-term Debt-paying AbilityDebt Ratio Stryker38.07%34.16%27.30%28.89%26.86% Zimmer?35.33%27.86%27.57%21.95%17.85%Debt-equity Ratio Stryker0.6150.5190.3750.4060.367 Zimmer?0.5460.3860.3810.2810.217Times Interest Earned Strykern/an/an/an/an/a Zimmern/an/an/an/an/aProfitabilityProfit Margin (Net Income/Sales) Stryker16.19%17.40%16.47%17.08%16.96% Zimmer17.09%14.14%17.52%20.59%19.84%ROA (Net Income/Assets) Stryker10.84%11.68%8.93%9.50%8.77% Zimmer? 9.26%6.94%8.42%10.35%9.37%ROE (Net Income/Shareholder Equity) Stryker17.51%17.74%14.41%15.19%13.08% Zimmer?13.22%10.56%13.03%15.15%12.85%Asset Utilization/Management EfficiencyTotal Asset Turnover Stryker0.6700.6720.5420.5560.517 Zimmer0.3630.3390.3300.3410.336Inventory Turnover Measures Stryker6.4756.9255.2405.1804.672 Zimmer4.6574.5044.4054.2563.997Accounts Receivable Turnoverc Stryker6.26.15.96.26.2 Zimmer5.55.55.55.96.0Market MeasuresPrice/Earnings Ratioc Stryker14.416.818.214.430.6 Zimmer13.318.117.810.920.3Earnings Per Common Sharec Stryker$3.48$3.21$2.79$2.81$2.48 Zimmer?$4.05$2.98$3.34$3.73$3.28Dividend Payout Ratioc Stryker22%20%9%14%9% Zimmer00000aExcept for most of Stryker 2011 data and where indicated, data is from "Stryker Corp," 2012.bExcept where indicated, data is from "Zimmer Holdings Inc," 2012.cData for Stryker from "Stryker," 2012 and data for Zimmer from "Zimmer," 2012Note: 2011 Stryker data is calculated from “Stryker Corporation and Subsidiaries: Consolidated Statements of Earnings,” 2011, Stryker Corporation 2011 Annual Report, p. 20 and “Stryker Corporation and Subsidiaries: Consolidated Balance Sheets,” 2011, Stryker Corporation 2011 Annual Report, p. 21.In reviewing the statistical financial ratios in Table 5 above, Stryker and the benchmark company Zimmer are pretty similar in most areas. For 2011, Stryker has current liabilities of $1.828 billion as seen in Table 2. Looking at the liquidity ratios, it doesn’t seem as though they will have a problem paying that off in the upcoming year. Stryker has a higher current ratio than the benchmark company, Zimmer. It is not significantly high enough to cause concern. Stryker doesn’t have an excess amount of cash tied up in non-operating assets. And as seen in the financial statements, only 17.8 percent of total current assets was invested in inventory in 2011, so it doesn’t seem as though there is a problem there. A high current ratio is actually seen as a positive sign by creditors. It means that both companies can support their short-term debts. However both companies’ ratios are on the higher side of average, but still within range for their industry. If they increase, one should investigate efficiency, short-term financing capabilities, and management of working capital. Over the last five years, Stryker’s current ratio has risen and fallen, but is settling back to its 2007 level. The large decrease from 2010 to 2011 is something to watch. If the ratio continues its steep decline, this could be an indicator that they are having problems paying off their short-term debts. However, the lower current ratio is a positive sign for the shareholders. Stryker’s cash ratio is also higher than Zimmer’s (1.87 vs. 1.41), but relative to cash ratios in general, both are pretty high. A cash ratio of less than 1.0 is usually ideal. Zimmer had great cash ratios in 2007 and 2008, but they have been on the rise since then. The higher cash ratios for these two companies in 2011 could mean that both companies are holding onto too much cash. They could be losing out on interest income by doing this. Again, historically Stryker’s cash ratio has gone up and down and is back near the 2007 level. This is a good sign and hopefully next year’s data will continue to show a decrease.Finally, Stryker’s quick ratio was about 3.2, which is higher than Zimmer’s ratio of about 2.7. Both ratios are above 1.0 and this could indicate that companies are growing steadily. The current ratios are not significantly higher than the quick ratios for either company, which again shows that their current assets are not heavy in inventory. Being that the technology field has rapid changes and developments, it is not a good idea for this company to hold onto any old inventory. They don’t want to end up with obsolete stock when the next new product is developed. Stryker’s quick ratio was on the rise since 2008, but again is coming back down to its 2007 level. Again it will be good to keep an eye on this ratio and make sure it doesn’t fall too low making this company a risky investment.Switching over to some long-term debt ratios, Stryker’s debt ratio (38.07%) is slightly higher than Zimmer’s (35.33%). Both of their percentages are in the mid to high 30’s, and this indicates that the companies are doing well and are not reliant on being in debt. Although Stryker’s debt ratio is a little on the high side, the company has been well-established and doesn’t seem to be too in-debt. Stryker’s debt ratio has for the most part been on the rise since 2007. This is good for stockholders, but creditors may be keeping an eye on these increasing values. Both companies’ debt-equity ratios are less than 1.0, with Stryker’s at 0.615 and Zimmer’s at 0.546. This means that most of their assets are financed through equity. For example, Stryker has $0.62 of debt for every dollar of equity. This ratio has also been on the rise for Stryker when compared to 2007. Again this is viewed as an opportunity for stockholders.Neither Stryker nor Zimmer had interest expenses listed on their income statements, so times interest earned could not be calculated.In examining profitability, Stryker’s profit margin for 2011 was 16.19 percent and Zimmer’s was 17.09 percent. These rates are pretty good for the industry. Medical technology can be a costly undertaking. To put it in perspective, Stryker makes about $0.16 for every dollar that it sells. Stryker’s profit margin has remained relatively stable since 2007, while Zimmer’s took a hit after 2008. Stryker’s profit margin is at its lowest since 2007, but not significantly low enough at this point to cause concern. An investor would be wise to keep a watchful eye on this statistic to make sure it doesn’t decline further in 2012. Turning to ROA, Stryker’s was 10.84% in 2011 and Zimmer’s was 9.26%. These are very similar to each other and also about the same or better than others in the industry. Over the last five years, Stryker’s ROA has risen and fallen but appears to be on the increase. They don’t overuse debt based on the previous findings, so this is consistent with the other figures.Looking at the ROE, there was a bit more separation between Stryker and Zimmer. Stryker’s ROE was 17.51 percent in 2011, and Zimmer’s was 13.22 percent. Stryker’s ROE is better than the benchmark and better than the average industry rates. Stryker’s ROE overall has been on the rise since 2007. Shareholders should be satisfied that their money is well-invested and earning a good profit. It would also be good to look at return on invested capital (ROIC) when examining profitability ratios. Stryker has been efficient when investing in projects (R&D), land, buildings and equipment. From 2007 to 2011, its ROIC was 23.28%, 25.87%, 28.43%, 27.81% and 16.87% (“Excellent Cash Return’” 2012). This is great for a medical technology company like Stryker that has to invest a lot of its assets in research and development. Typically firms with high costs from R&D also have higher fixed costs and thus high operative leverage (Ehrhardt & Brigham, 2011, p. 604).Next there are the asset utilization and management efficiency ratios. Stryker had a total asset turnover ratio of 0.67 in 2011, compared to Zimmer’s 0.36. The increase of this ratio since 2007 is a good sign. But Stryker’s ratio, even though higher than Zimmer’s, still has some room for improvement. Perhaps some assets could be sold and/or sales increased. Inventory turnover measures were 6.475 for Stryker compared to 4.657 for Zimmer in 2011. This means that Stryker sells off its entire inventory and restocks it about 6.5 times per year. This is good again considering that there is a lot of technology involved in their products that can become obsolete quickly, so they don’t want to hold onto their inventory too long. This rate has been increasing for the most part over the last five years, and this should be viewed as a positive sign for the company especially when compared to the benchmark company. Next, looking at the accounts receivable turnover data, Stryker is at 6.2 and Zimmer at 5.5 so again Stryker comes out on top here. This is one ratio that has remained fairly consistent for both companies over the last five years. Typically it would be ideal to get this ratio higher, but these companies sell large capital items that tend to require most purchasers to use long-term financing. If Stryker attempts to aggressively seek a higher ratio here, they could lose out on large sales.When looking at efficiency ratios, it is always good to also take a look at the cash conversion cycle (CCC). Though not listed in Table 5, CCC can be calculated from Stryker’s financial statements. For 2011, Stryker’s CCC is 184.05. This number, like the other ratios, needs to be evaluated in context with past figures. Stryker’s CCC ratios from 2006 to 2010 are 150, 155, 166, 180, and 182 (Jayson, 2012). This looks pretty bad. But as Jayson (2012) points out, businesses tend to be cyclical and Stryker’s CCC ratios really need to be viewed on a quarterly basis as well. Table 6 shows the quarterly breakdown of Stryker’s CCC ratios from 2010 and 2011. The different cycles can be viewed from this data and the average CCC looks better here than the annual data. So the cash conversion cycle for Stryker is mixed (Jayson, 2012). Zimmer’s CCC levels have bounced around in the mid 400’s for the past few years and settled at about 418 at the end of 2011 (“Zimmer Holdings, Inc. Operating Efficiency,” 2011). So in comparison, Stryker’s CCC is much better than the benchmark company’s, although there is some room for improvement. There is a definite relationship between CCC and stock price, and if Stryker can drop even 10 days off of its CCC it could increase its profit margin (Ehrhardt & Brigham, 2011, p. 653).Table 6Stryker’s Quarterly CCC Ratios—2010 & 2011From “Stryker What Stryker's Earnings Headlines Didn't Tell You,” 2012.Moving along to market measures, Stryker’s PE ratio was 14.4 in 2011, compared to Zimmer’s 13.3. This puts Stryker at or above the industry levels suggesting investors view the company as a high growth firm with less risk. To put this into perspective, it means that investors will pay $14.40 for every dollar of earnings. Both companies have of course seen a huge drop in their PE ratios since 2007, but that is not surprising. In looking at earnings per common share in 2011, Stryker was at $3.48 and Zimmer was at $4.05. So Stryker is below the benchmark but has improved over the past five years by one dollar per share. It is always a good sign to see an increase in the earnings per share amounts.As for the dividend payout ratio, Stryker was at 22 percent in 2011. Zimmer does not pay a dividend and so does not have a comparable statistic for this category. Stryker has steadily increased this over the last five years, minus a slight drop in 2008. This means for every dollar that Stryker earns, it pays its shareholders $0.22 in dividends. Stryker has got their payout ratio set at a good amount. It is not too low which would indicate that too much of the profit is being kept by the company for retained earnings. But it is also not too high which indicates Stryker is probably not a slow-growth company. This rate could continue to increase into the 30% range without causing any alarm. But if it starts to get much higher than this or much lower than its current rate, the investor may want to consider further investigation of the company’s profits.It helps to correlate this ratio analysis with a deeper look into the statement of cash flows helps to better understand Stryker’s financial position. The statement of cash flows reveals that Stryker’s AR increased by $111 million from 2009 to 2010, and then increased again by $31 million from 2010 to 2011. That is a 27.9 percent increase in AR for the past two fiscal years. Stryker spent $166 million on inventory in 2011. This was an increase of $35 million from 2010. From 2009 to 2010, there was a $165 million increase in inventories. This is about a 21.2 percent increase in inventories for the past two fiscal years which is pretty comparable to the increase in AR. It would seem that the inventory they are producing is being sold at relatively the same rate as they are making it, which is an encouraging statistic. By examining this in comparison to the balance sheet, one can see that raw materials increased at about 15 percent and finished goods increased at about 20 percent. Stryker may have had a small surplus of raw materials or found a more efficient way to make their products. Either way, neither of these assumptions is alarming. The amount of AP decreased from $96 million in 2010 to $44 million in 2011. So it appears they have paid down some of their debts by about $52 million, or about 54 percent. In 2009 this number was -$80 million, so AP had increased quite a bit from 2009 to 2010. It is good to see that they are paying off some of this debt. The cash from operating activities has been a steady, positive amount since 2009. This is also a good sign. The net earnings has been fairly close to cash from operating activities for the last three years, which shows that the quality of the cash is good. Stryker’s Key StatisticsEven after reviewing all of the various ratios, there are still other statistics that should be considered before investing in a company when doing a thorough analysis. The personal favorite of the author is beta. A beta coefficient of 1.0 indicates that the stock is performing at the same rate as the market. It has the same ups and downs as the market and they are at the same degree of intensity as well. So in essence beta is a measure of volatility or risk. Currently (in September 2012), Stryker has a beta of 0.88 ("Yahoo Finance Stryker Corporation," 2012). Since it is less than one, this means that Stryker’s stock basically has the same ups and downs that the market has, but to a lesser degree. So there is slightly less risk involved when investing in Stryker stock when compared to the average stock in the market. Stryker’s market value as of March 29, 2012 was almost $21 billion ("Fortune 500: 308 Stryker," 2012). The diluted EPS was $3.64 as of September 27, 2012 (“Yahoo Finance Technical Analysis,” 2012). Some other key statistics can be seen in Figure 1 shown below.Figure 1Key Statistics for StrykerFrom Samz, D. “Stryker’s Problems Are Not So Bad,” 2012.As one can see from the statistics, Stryker is performing better than the industry in most categories. The P/E ratio, EPS growth, revenue growth, operating margin for the trailing 12 months, ROE for the trailing 12 months and the debt to equity ratio are all better than the industry average. Based on these statistics, the author believes that Stryker is a good buy currently when considering stocks within the industry. There are assuredly stocks outside the industry that are better buys, but when looking at medical technology stocks, Stryker is doing well compared to its competition. Forecast of Several Key Variables Figure 2Stryker Corporation: Stock Price For Five Years, Linear Regression LineData from "Stryker Corporation Historical Prices," 2012.Figure 3Stryker Corporation: Stock Price For Five Years, Moving AverageData from "Stryker Corporation Historical Prices," 2012.According to regression line analysis of the last five years worth of data as shown in Figure 2, Stryker’s stock price one year from now will be at about $48 per share. Realistically this is a low estimate since it includes the large drop in price that affected almost all stocks in 2008. Looking at the moving average in Figure 3 to make a forecast, Stryker stock will be at about $56 per share. This seems more likely and reasonable. “Yahoo Finance Technical Analysis” (2012) puts the stock at $61.05 per share next year. The Financial Times puts the forecast price between $54 and $78 with a median range of $60.50. Their 31 analysts all agree that Stryker will outperform the market (“Stryker Corp Forecasts,” 2012). The graph that they used to make their forecast is shown below in Figure 4.Figure 4Stryker ForecastFrom “Stryker Corp Forecasts,” 2012.Depending on how the new CEO works out and any new changes in regulation that may develop within the industry, the author believes that $60 to $61 is probably a good forecast for the one year estimate of Stryker stock. If things go well and the new CEO continues to grow the company and takes it in the right direction, the stock should be closer to $61 per share. Other InformationAs shown in the detailed analysis preceding this section, one can see that Stryker’s statistics overall look pretty good and consistent for the past few years. Stryker has acquired other companies over the past couple of years including its neurovascular segment and is developing the spine segment. New regulations are calling for a 2.3% tax on medical devices which will assuredly have an impact on Stryker’s bottom line, as well as that of its competitors. There has been some bad press on one of the directors, Ronda Stryker, for selling off her shares over the last few years. But she has been a board member since 1984 and claims she is doing this for philanthropic reasons. There have also been some product recalls which have hurt sales. But Stryker continues to have a good presence in the overseas markets and overall continues to do well as described above (Samz, 2012). There was also some negative press regarding the previous CEO’s (MacMillan’s) exit, but the company seems to have escaped too much negative effects from his departure. The announcement on October 1, 2012 of the new President and CEO, Kevin Lobo, does not appear to have negatively affected the stock price. To the contrary, the stock price actually rose and closed high by October 4, 2012. This led The Street Wire to name it the featured health care winner of the day. The price rose 64 cents or 1.2 percent to $55.06 on average volume (“Stryker Corporation (SYK): Today's Featured,” 2012).Stryker has a Morningstar credit rating of AA and is financed with 18.2 percent debt and 81.8 percent equity as of June 2012 (“Stryker Corporation Capital Structure,” 2012). This is a great credit rating. In addition, the S&P changed its rating from A-1 to A-1+ in June of 2012. They stated that the firm’s growth in revenue, very low debt, consistency, reputation with physicians, and diversity of products which helps minimize the risk of recalls has helped Stryker achieve this upgrade in its credit rating (Zipp, 2012). According to Ehrhardt and Brigham (2011, p. 617), a firm’s optimal capital structure is related to its investment opportunities. Firms with many profitable opportunities should use low levels of debt. This is exactly what Stryker is doing with their capital structure mix. This allows Stryker to maintain its ability to invest and maintain reserve borrowing capacity (Ehrhardt & Brigham, 2011, p. 617).According to a recent 8-K SEC filing, Stryker recently refinanced its $1 billion revolving line of credit through JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A., due in August 2013 and it is now due in August 2017 (“Entry into a Material Definitive Agreement,” 2012). In addition, there was a SEC filing in May 2012 regarding pending litigation. Stryker expects to settle with the Department of Justice on the matter for an amount of $33 million. This lawsuit was regarding the marketing and sales of its OtisKnee device which the DOJ alleges was not properly approved by the FDA. According to the SEC filing, this charge impacted the diluted earnings per share by $0.09/share in the second quarter earnings in 2012 (“Other Events, 2012).In a personal interview with a podiatric surgeon that uses various products including Stryker’s, the physician stated that he prefers Stryker’s screws and will only use them since they have proven to be high-quality and very reliable over the years. Other companies have changed to “cheaper” materials which this surgeon prefers not to use in his patients (W. Smith, personal communication, September 20, 2012).Finally, the author interviewed a current Stryker employee who wished to remain anonymous. The employee works in the craniomaxillofacial sales division and has occupied his position for the past five months. He stated there was a rigorous two-month interview process before he was hired which included ride-along sales calls and a personality exam. The employee likes working for the company since it is well-renowned in its industry, although he said it is very competitive. He also stated that the company sends its employees to various training programs which he enjoys. The employees do get stock options, but he was unable to disclose the particular details on the options. In short, the employee said he loves working for the company and would recommend it as a great place to work (Anonymous, 2012).Recommendation Regarding the Future of Stryker As indicated in the above sections, the author believes this stock will be a good buy if one is looking to invest in the medical technologies sector. Their statistics all vet out to be sound, stable and consistent especially when compared to benchmark companies such as Zimmer and others within the industry. Stryker has set themselves up with a good debt to equity ratios, an AA credit rating from Morningstar and an A-1+ rating with S&P, and they are investing in areas which should provide abundant growth. They don’t have an excessive amount of negative press in the media. On the contrary, news of the new CEO has actually increased the company’s stock price. The company is very well established and is still controlled by members of the family who started it back in 1941. The author believes that family members tend to want to keep the family reputation clean and will continue to run the company with the same mission and values in mind going forward. Physicians prefer Stryker products since they have proven to be dependable over the years. The large diversity of products helps reduce risk to the company, especially from litigation and recalls. The author would invest both financial capital as a shareholder in addition to human and intellectual capital as an employee in Stryker and believes the company will be around for many years to come.ReferencesAnonymous. (2012, October 12). [Telephone interview by the author].Company history. (2011). Retrieved September 27, 2012, from overview [Brochure]. (2012). Retrieved from companyoverview/Departure of directors or certain officers; Election of directors; Appointment of certain officers; Compensatory arrangements of certain officers. (2012, September 28). Retrieved October 10, 2012, from , M. C., & Brigham, E. F. (2011). Corporate finance: A focused approach (4th ed.). Mason, OH: South-Western Cengage Learning.Entry into a material definitive agreement. (2012, August 22). Retrieved October 10, 2012, from cash return on invested capital over the past 5 years. (2012). Retrieved October 10, 2012, from 500: 308 Stryker. (2012, May 21). Retrieved from innovation advantage: Stryker 2011 annual review (Report). (2011). Retrieved from , S. (2012, February 27). What Stryker's earnings headlines didn't tell you. Retrieved from events. (2012, May 31). Retrieved October 10, 2012, from , K., & Becker, Y. (2012). Fact book 2011 [Pamphlet]. Retrieved from , D. (2012, August 30). Stryker's problems are not so bad. Retrieved from , W. (2012, September 20). [Personal interview by the author]. William Smith, DPM is a podiatric surgeon. He is board certified by the American Board of Podiatric Surgery.Stryker. (2012). Retrieved September 27, 2012, from Corp. (2012). Retrieved September 27, 2012, from Corp. (2012). Retrieved September 27, 2012, from Corp forecasts. (2012, September 21). Retrieved September 27, 2012, from Corporation 2011 annual report on form 10-K. (2011). Retrieved from HYPERLINK "" Corporation capital structure. (2012). Retrieved October 10, 2012, from Corporation historical prices. (2012). Retrieved September 27, 2012, from Corporation (SYK): Today's featured health care winner. (2012, October 4). Retrieved October 10, 2012, from worldwide sites. (2010). Retrieved September 27, 2012, from , C., & Lublin, J. S. (2012, October 1). Stryker names head of orthopedics unit as CEO. Retrieved October 9, 2012, from finance Stryker Corporation. (2012). Retrieved September 27, 2012, from ????? HYPERLINK "" finance technical analysis. (2012). Retrieved September 27, 2012, from . (2012). Retrieved September 27, 2012, from Holdings Inc. (2012). Retrieved September 27, 2012, from Holdings Inc. (2012). Retrieved September 27, 2012, from Holdings, Inc. operating efficiency. (2011). Retrieved from , Y. (2012, June 1). Report: Standard & Poor's raises Stryker to 'A-1+' rating. Retrieved October 10, 2012, from ................
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