3 Historically Stable Dividend Raisers in Medical Devices Offering Solid Yields With Fortress-Like Growth
Pacemakers and glucose monitors keep selling whether the economy booms or collapses, and three medical device giants have spent decades turning that predictable demand into paychecks that grow every single year. One has raised its dividend for 54 consecutive years…
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People keep needing pacemakers, glucose monitors, and syringes whether the economy is expanding or shrinking. That steady demand lets the best medical device makers raise their dividends through every kind of market. Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT | ABT Price Prediction), Medtronic (NYSE:MDT), and Becton Dickinson (NYSE:BDX) have each pushed their quarterly payout higher within the past year. The group’s anchor is Abbott, which is now in its 54th consecutive year of dividend increases. These are modest yields with a reliable growth engine behind them, and for a retiree that engine matters more than the starting number.
Abbott Laboratories: Biggest Raise of the Group
Abbott pays $0.63 per share each quarter, up from $0.59 before its most recent raise. That is the largest increase of the three names here, and it sets the forward annual rate at $2.52 per share. With shares at $100.98, the stock yields 2.45%, which puts it in dividend-growth territory rather than high-yield territory.
Dividend Safety Read
A quick definition for newer income investors: free cash flow is the cash left after a company funds its operations and capital spending, and it is the pool dividends actually come from. For 2025, Abbott generated $9.566 billion in operating cash flow against $2.171 billion in capital expenditures, while paying $4.116 billion in dividends. The latest quarter looked similar: $2.488 billion of operating cash flow, $399 million of capex, and $1.102 billion in dividends.
On earnings, trailing GAAP EPS of $3.09 sits above the $2.48 in dividends paid per share over the same stretch. GAAP profit is reduced by $658 million of amortization tied to the Exact Sciences deal. Management’s raised 2026 adjusted EPS guidance of $5.45 to $5.60 gives the $2.52 forward dividend a much wider buffer. Abbott’s dividend history stands out: the most recent payment was the 410th consecutive quarterly dividend, and Abbott is a member of the S&P 500 Dividend Aristocrats Index. Total dividend outlays rose every year from $3.202 billion in 2021 to $4.116 billion in 2025.
Fifty straight years of raises puts Abbott in rare company, and we ranked ten of those Dividend Kings by valuation in a free report you can grab here.
Bull Case for Income Investors
Abbott’s payout is funded by four engines: medical devices, diagnostics, nutrition, and branded generic medicines. When one segment stalls, the others carry the load. Second-quarter revenue reached $12.59 billion, up 13.0% year over year, and adjusted EPS of $1.31 beat the $1.28 estimate. The stock is down 17.91% year to date and trades at about 17x forward earnings, so new buyers lock in the yield at a lower entry price. Analysts are positive, with 4 strong buy ratings, 17 buys, and zero sells, plus a consensus target of $120.26.
Risk to Watch
The Exact Sciences acquisition added debt. Quarterly interest expense rose to $299 million from $50 million, a new fixed cost that competes with dividend growth until the deal pays for itself.
Medtronic: Highest Yield and a 49-Year Raise Streak
Medtronic lifted its quarterly dividend to $0.72 from $0.71, a one-cent bump that marked its 49th consecutive year of dividend increases. The forward annual rate is $2.88 per share. At $88.30 a share, the yield is 3.22%, the highest of this trio.
Dividend Safety Read
Cash coverage improved significantly last quarter. Free cash flow reached $1.29 billion, up 120.9%, against $921 million in dividends paid. For the full fiscal year ended in April, operating cash flow of $7.33 billion and capex of $1.904 billion compared with $3.639 billion in dividends. Trailing EPS of $4.06 covers the $2.88 forward payout, and raised fiscal 2027 non-GAAP EPS guidance of $5.94 to $6.00 widens that margin further. Management also found room for $1.035 billion of buybacks in fiscal 2026.
Bull Case for Income Investors
Growth is back. First-quarter revenue rose 13.7% to $9.76 billion, helped by an extra fiscal week worth roughly $570 million. Cardiac Ablation Solutions grew 88%, and CEO Geoff Martha pointed to the strongest annual top-line growth in 10 years. Adjusted EPS of $1.45 beat the $1.39 estimate. The stock trades near 15x forward earnings with a beta of 0.574, so retirees get a higher starting yield with below-market volatility.
Risk to Watch
Medtronic plans to separate its Diabetes business. Breakups bring one-time costs, stranded overhead, and a smaller earnings base, and the board will need to prove the remaining company can keep the streak moving toward 50 years without strain.
Becton Dickinson: A Leaner Company Still Raising
BD pays $1.05 per quarter, up from $1.04, for a forward annual rate of $4.20. At $183.83 a share, the yield is 2.28%. BD has the newest story of the three: it spun off its Biosciences and Diagnostic Solutions business in February 2026 and now runs as a pure-play medtech company.
Can a Slimmer BD Carry This Payout?
Yes, based on the cash numbers. Year-to-date free cash flow reached $1.73 billion, up 44.6%, while dividends over the same period totaled $0.9 billion. BD also funded roughly $2.3 billion in buybacks, which signals management sees excess capacity. Raised fiscal 2026 adjusted EPS guidance of $12.62 to $12.72 exceeds the $4.20 forward dividend. Trailing GAAP EPS is a lower $5.77, weighed down by $487 million in restructuring charges and a $450 million non-cash impairment. Net leverage sits near 2.9 times, above the 2.5 times long-term target. The dividend record shows an increase every year in the available history, climbing from $0.495 in 2013 to today’s rate.
Bull Case for Income Investors
The new BD is posting clean results. Third-quarter adjusted EPS of $3.23 beat the $3.14 estimate, and revenue of $4.98 billion exceeded the $4.89 billion forecast. BD has signed approximately 100 agreements across GLP-1 drug programs, and PureWIC has logged 37 consecutive quarters of double-digit growth. CEO Tom Polen summed up the restructuring: “This is our first quarter as a focused med tech company.” Investors have noticed. Shares are up 22.81% year to date, the stock outperformed competitors on a strong trading day last week, and it still trades around 14x forward earnings.
Risk to Watch
Fiscal 2027 carries a known drag as Alaris remediation winds down. CFO Vitor Roque said, “We have consistently characterized FY27 as low single-digit revenue growth, and that is due to the Alaris remediation coming to an end in FY26, which creates a 200 basis points headwind.” Slower top-line growth could keep future raises small.
Why These Three Raisers Belong in a Retirement Portfolio
Abbott, Medtronic, and BD all yield between roughly 2% and 3.5%, and each backs its payout with free cash flow that well exceeds what it sends to shareholders. For a retiree, a dividend that climbs every year protects purchasing power in a way a static high yield cannot. Abbott brings the biggest raise and a 54-year streak, Medtronic brings the highest yield and 49 straight increases, and BD brings a newly focused business with fast-growing cash flow. Together they turn steady medical demand into a rising income stream.
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Chris Lange is a financial and geopolitical writer with more than a decade of experience covering a myriad of topics. He has published thousands of articles for 24/7 Wall St., with past coverage focused heavily on stocks, IPOs, healthcare, defense, global affairs, and technology.
His work has been quoted, or referenced by a number of outlets including Business Insider, USA Today, Yahoo Finance, MSN, The Motley Fool, and many other publications. A graduate of Southwestern University, he studied business with a focus on investments and has previous experience in banking and startups.
When not reading or writing the news, he is following his passion for Lacrosse, playing chess, or building solar projects with his dad.
