GE HealthCare expects smaller tariff impact in 2026

GE HealthCare expects a smaller earnings impact from tariffs this year, as the company works to mitigate the cost of the Trump administration’s levies, CFO James Saccaro told investors on a Wednesday earnings call.

Sacarro said the company would take more actions to mitigate tariffs, including making shifts to its supply chain, transferring products to more “tariff efficient” geographies, and more duty-free efforts around the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement. 

GE HealthCare has moved a line of PET/CT imaging devices from the Middle East to the U.S., and a surgery line from Asia to the U.S., using the company’s existing infrastructure, Saccaro said. The CFO added that the firm also worked with large, vertically integrated contract manufacturers to move production to more favorable geographies. 

The company took a total earnings hit of $245 million from tariffs last year, Saccaro said.

 In the fourth quarter, GE HealthCare’s margins were negatively impacted by about $100 million in tariff expenses, Saccaro said. Going into 2026, the company expects the largest tariff hit in the first quarter, given the timing of policy changes last year.

Saccaro said tariffs are now “neutral to positive to our financial performance.” Mizuho analyst Anthony Petrone cited lower U.S.-China rates and mitigation efforts as reasons for this stance in a note to clients this week. 

In November, the U.S. agreed to lower tariff rates on imports from China to 10% from 20%. However, one unknown still looms over the medtech sector. In September, the Trump administration opened a Section 232 national security investigation into medical equipment. In other industries, such as automobiles, steel and aluminum, the Trump administration has used Section 232 as another mechanism to impose tariffs. No new medtech levies have yet been announced.