3 Healthcare Stocks That Pay You a Dividend While You Wait for a Recovery
Key Points
Some shareholders are waiting for healthcare stocks to rebound.
As they wait, some companies pay out dividends with meaningful yields that make that waiting easier.
The dividend payout can help boost the total return potential for Medtronic, Sanofi, and Bristol Myers Squibb.
- 10 stocks we like better than Medtronic ›
Some investors have watched their healthcare stock holdings drop in value recently or over the years, yet they have stuck around. That's because those companies are still paying dividends with meaningful yields to loyal shareholders.
In the healthcare sector, the shares of these three companies are down over different periods, so depending on when someone first owned shares, they may be in the situation described above.
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Medtronic (NYSE: MDT), Sanofi (NASDAQ: SNY), and Bristol Myers Squibb (NYSE: BMY) all pay dividends with respectable yields as shareholders wait for a recovery.
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Medtronic
Device maker Medtronic serves several medical markets, including cardiovascular, neuroscience, and diabetes. Those medical devices make a lot of money; Medtronic's revenue in the fiscal third quarter of 2026 (which ended Jan. 23) reached $9 billion, an 8.7% increase from the previous year.
The stock price has fallen more than 35% over the past five years and is down this year as costs for the company rise and profits shrink. Heading into its fiscal 2026, Medtronic also expected to face a significant impact from tariffs.
To look at a recent example, gross margin dropped from 66.6% in Q3 2025 to 64.9% in Q3 2026. Both operating margin and net income fell during that same period from the previous year.
As shareholders wait to see if the company can navigate this turbulent period and for the stock price to rebound, Medtronic pays a dividend yielding 3.3%. And that dividend is consistent: The company has increased its dividend payout for 48 consecutive years.
Sanofi
Sanofi develops and manufactures drug treatments across oncology, neurology, and immunology. It has a broad portfolio and a massive pipeline, but the company has struggled to reward shareholders, not only in 2026 but also over the last five years.
There's been a mix of issues weighing on the stock price. One is the worry that the company will eventually lose its patent on Dupixent, which has been a heavy-hitting drug for the company. Dupixent sales increased by 32.2% in 2025 and generated 4.2 billion euros in revenue.
Sanofi will need its pipeline to do some heavy lifting to offset that sales loss in the future. There's also been some turbulence on the leadership front, with Sanofi's board announcing in February that it was bringing in a new CEO.
As Sanofi works to find a replacement for Dupixent, it expects its total sales in 2026 will climb by a high-single-digit percentage compared to 2025. It also pays a generous 5% dividend yield as shareholders wait to see more progress from the company in managing its issues.
Bristol Myers Squibb
Shares of Bristol Myers are up on the year, but the stock price is still down around 10% over the last five years. One concern has been slowing revenue from the company's "legacy portfolio," which took a nosedive from $25.7 billion in 2024 to $21.8 billion in 2025.
There's an upcoming concern with its blood thinner drug, Eliquis, which brought in $14.4 billion in global revenue in 2025 but faces a patent cliff. On top of all that, the company could be adding on more debt with the potential $1.5 billion acquisition of Orbital Therapeutics.
The good news is Bristol is showing progress with its "growth portfolio" to offset the slumping sales from its legacy portfolio. Revenue for that portfolio climbed from $22.6 billion in 2024 to $26.4 billion in 2025, and its growth portfolio features several drugs that generate $1 billion or more in global sales.
Revenue is expected to slightly decline in 2026 from 2025, but it's not a significant drop-off. As investors wait for sales from Bristol's growth portfolio to keep growing, the company will pay a dividend yielding 4.2%. Of the three, Bristol is the strongest for an investment consideration, as the stock price has momentum in 2026. But all the companies above are paying dividends with meaningful yields that can contribute to a positive total return.
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Jack Delaney has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Bristol Myers Squibb and Medtronic. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
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