Medical Device Makers Fall After Citi Says Amazon Coming Soon

Amazon.com (AMZN) is likely further ahead in accessing the medical supply chain than it is within other parts of healthcare, Citi analyst Amit Hazan told investors earlier in a research note titled “Amazon: Coming for Medtech Sooner Than You Think.”

The analyst believes Amazon is working with an advisory board of at least 12 large hospital systems who in total represent 5%-8% of supply purchases in the U.S. Hazan sees a high likelihood that one or more major hospital systems could announce Amazon as their distributor in the near term. Makers of medical devices are trading lower in midday trading, with Baxter (BAX), Becton Dickinson (BDX), Boston Scientific (BSX), Medtronic (MDT), Stryker (SYK) and Zimmer Biomet (ZBH) all in the red by over 1.5%. Hazan says that hospital systems he spoke to were “overwhelmingly positive” towards an Amazon entry. A number of entities predicted 20%-30% of their medical supply purchases could move to Amazon distribution within the next 24 months, Hazan wrote. healthcare i distributors Cardinal Health (CAH) and McKesson (MCK) are also trading lower in today’s trading while AmerisourceBergen (ABC) is up 58c to $75.83.