Edwards Lifesciences price target raised to $87 from $75 at Stifel

Stifel analyst Rick Wise raised the firm’s price target on Edwards Lifesciences to $87 from $75 and keeps a Hold rating on the shares. It seems "abundantly clear" based on "a highly-encouraging 1Q23 MedTech week one earnings," that if sustained, the macro environment is improving, the analyst tells investors. However, despite this past week’s broadly positive procedure volume recovery commentary, the firm asked seven of the ten participating physicians from its November/December 2022 TAVR due diligence to comment on their latest expectations and "this physician group’s TAVR growth expectations have not improved," the analyst tells investors. Macro improvement in the space appears encouraging for TAVRs’ 2023 volume re-acceleration, but its physician checks, "at this point, do not support a re-acceleration thesis," the firm added.