Investopedia: Covidien's Image Starting To Change

For most of its time as an independent company, Covidien (NYSE:COV) has struggled to change a Wall Street perception that it was a slow-growth collection of unimpressive assets, sullied in part by a parent company that for years preferred to drain cash from the business rather than reinvest. Opinions and perceptions are slow to change, but with some dynamic acquisitions, new products, and strong performance relative to peers, it may be time to change the tune on Covidien. 


A Very Good Third Quarter
Disappointingly sluggish core surgery results from Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ), Stryker (NYSE:SYK) and Bard (NYSE:BCR) made it seem likely that Covidien would have a fairly unimpressive third quarter. Covidien, though, actually delivered solid results.

To be fair, this is a relative evaluation. Reported revenue growth of 14% looked nice, but constant currency growth was a more modest 9% and organic growth was an even more modest 4%. Nevertheless, with 4% constant currency growth in devices, Covidien looked like a share gainer this quarter. The company's pharmaceutical business (down 4% constant currency) and medical supply (up 2%) were less impressive. 



To read the full piece:
http://stocks.investopedia.com/stock-analysis/2011/Covidiens-Image-Starting-To-Change-COV-JNJ-SYK-BCR-CSII-BDX-VRX0803.aspx