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Which medtech companies get acquired, and why? At LSI USA ’26, a panel titled “Medtech M&A: An Optimist’s Perspective on the Future of Medtech” put that question to the people who make those decisions: corporate development leaders from Medtronic and Edwards Lifesciences, a banker from Evercore, an investor from Vensana Capital, and an EY-Parthenon partner as moderator.

Their message was more nuanced than “deals are back.” Buyers are deploying capital with discipline, revenue growth carries an unusually high premium, and a working device is no longer enough to win a buyer’s attention.

John Heinbigner, Partner at EY-Parthenon, moderated. The panelists were Chris Eso, VP and Global Head of Corporate and Business Development, M&A and Ventures at Medtronic; Bennett Blau, Senior Managing Director at Evercore; Greg Banker, Partner at Vensana Capital; and Chad Rice, Senior Vice President of Corporate Development at Edwards Lifesciences.

The Gap Between Medtech Fundamentals and Valuations 

Heinbigner framed the starting point: the medtech market grew roughly 6% in 2025, and utilization and capital spending remain healthy. Public investors have not rewarded that strength. A sector that historically traded at a premium to the broader market now trades at a discount.

Blau put numbers on the disconnect. Over the past three years, he said, the S&P 500 is up about 70%, healthcare is up 20% to 25%, and medtech is down 5% to 10%. One consequence is an IPO window he called “incredibly selective” for medtech companies.

Why Buyers Pay So Much for Growth 

For large acquirers, the core problem is scarcity. Blau noted that there are too few scaled, fast-growing public medtech companies to meaningfully lift the top line of the biggest strategics.

That scarcity has changed how growth is priced. Before COVID, Blau said, each point of revenue growth was worth about one to one and a half turns of EBITDA. Today it can be worth two and a half to three turns. Buyers therefore have two main levers: buy growth, or divest slower businesses to improve the growth profile of what remains.

Two Buyer Playbooks: Medtronic and Edwards 

Medtronic’s approach is volume and consistency. Eso said the company completes five or six acquisitions a year, most of them too small to announce, alongside minority investments and structured deals. He called it the “M&A train” and made clear Medtronic is on it.

Edwards Lifesciences takes a narrower route. Rice said the company puts “a box around the heart” and focuses on structural heart disease. Edwards tends to engage early, invest over time, build conviction, and acquire once strategic fit is clear. His advice to founders was to build the relationship before you need anything from the buyer.

What Buyers Think About AI 

Panelists named interventional, vascular, neuro, and robotics as active areas, along with the convergence of medtech and health technology. AI came up repeatedly, always with the same condition attached: it has to produce a clinical result.

Blau said AI earns a premium only when it clearly advances patient care, not because it is the word of the day. Eso said Medtronic is not buying “AI for the sake of buying AI” and wants AI tied to a therapy that improves adoption or outcomes. Rice said AI must do something that translates into his medical device world. Banker added that the AI companies drawing real interest look like traditional medtech: FDA-regulated, used by subspecialty physicians, and built into clinical workflows.

The Difference Between Nice-to-Have and Must-Have 

Banker offered a three-part test for acquisition targets. The company must solve a problem the strategic or its customers care about, offer something the strategic does not already have, and create scarcity or competitive pressure. Miss one, he said, and you are more likely a nice-to-have than a must-have.

Rice warned against rushing to commercialize in hopes that a few million dollars of revenue will lift valuation. If quality systems, cost of goods, or supply chain are weak, early sales tend to expose those problems rather than hide them. Stabilize the base business first, he said, then commercialize.

Eso stressed honesty during diligence: be clear about where you are in development and what you do not yet know, because the buyer will find out anyway. Blau added that the best transactions feel more like partnerships than negotiations.

What It Means for Founders and Medtech Investors 

For founders and venture investors, the takeaway is patience and precision. Capital is available and strategics are active, but the bar for a must-have asset is higher than it was. Eso said Medtronic expects to deploy upwards of another $2 billion to $3 billion over the next 12 to 18 months through minority stakes, earlier-stage investments, structured deals, and acquisitions. Blau also pointed to a broader shift, with healthcare increasingly viewed as a moat relative to parts of tech and software.

Key Takeaways  

• Public market valuations lag medtech’s operating fundamentals.

• Each point of revenue growth now commands roughly twice the EBITDA multiple it did before COVID.

• Medtronic and Edwards Lifesciences remain active buyers, even when individual deals go unannounced.

• AI adds value in a deal only when it is tied to a clinical outcome.

• Must-buy companies solve a real problem, fill a gap in the buyer’s portfolio, and build trust through transparency.

Conversations like this one are why LSI USA draws the strategics, investors, and founders who drive medtech deal activity. If you are preparing for an exit, a partnership, or your next round, LSI USA ’27 (March 15 to 19, 2027, Dana Point, California) is where to meet buyers before diligence begins.

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