LivaNova (LIVN) Goldman Sachs 47th Annual Global Healthcare Conference 2026 summary

Strategic overview and growth drivers

• Focus on reinvesting in core cardiopulmonary and epilepsy businesses to sustain above-market growth, while expanding into neuromodulation and obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) markets for long-term acceleration.

• Achieved significant upsides: nearly 50% reimbursement improvement for VNS Therapy in epilepsy and faster scaling of oxygenator manufacturing, resulting in market share growth from 30% to 40% in 2.5 years.

• Growth is driven by geographic balance, price increases, market share gains, product upgrades, and improved penetration of VNS procedures.

• Leadership renewal and cultural initiatives, such as empowered accountability, have improved organizational engagement and performance.

• Capital allocation remains focused on core business, OSA, and tuck-in acquisitions, with continued conviction in OSA's long-term potential despite current market headwinds.

Business segment updates

• VNS Therapy for epilepsy benefited from improved reimbursement, leading to higher realized prices and anticipated volume growth, supported by strong clinical data from the CORE-VNS study.

• Barriers to VNS adoption are being addressed through updated clinical perceptions and technology advancements, with ongoing education for clinicians and sales teams.

• Drug competition in epilepsy is not expected to materially impact the addressable market for VNS, as the proportion of drug-resistant patients remains stable.

• Essenz heart-lung machine upgrade cycle is driving double-digit growth, with most orders including full optionality and further opportunities in software and equipment upgrades.

• Oxygenator manufacturing capacity is expanding, with plans to increase output by 60% and launch a new differentiated product in 2028, targeting up to 60% market share.

Financial outlook and operational discipline

• Commitment to maintaining at least 20% operating margin while investing in OSA, with disciplined phasing of OpEx and revenue expected to support margin expansion in the second half of the year.

• OSA program remains on track, with a PMA supplement filing expected in the second half of the year, limited commercial release in the first half of next year, and full commercial launch in the second half.

• Close collaboration with CMS on reimbursement for treatment-resistant depression, with internal teams preparing for various scenarios and timelines benchmarked to recent NCD processes.