Medline’s blockbuster debut on the Nasdaq has jolted life back into the global IPO market. The U.S. medical-supplies group saw its shares surge about 41% above their offer price on the first day of trading after raising roughly $6.3 billion in the largest initial public offering of 2025, eclipsing any other listing globally this year. The performance marks the most significant new U.S. share sale since electric-vehicle maker Rivian went public in 2021, and the biggest private‑equity‑backed IPO on record.

Image Illustration. Photo by Jakub Żerdzicki on Unsplash

A $6.3bn deal that tops 2025’s IPO league table

Medline, the largest U.S. provider of medical‑surgical products, priced its IPO at $29 a share and sold just over 216 million shares in an upsized offering, raising about $6.26 billion in gross proceeds. Medline priced its IPO at $29 per share, selling around 216 million shares to raise approximately $6.26 billion, putting the deal comfortably ahead of the $5.3 billion listing by Chinese battery maker CATL earlier in the year. The offering dethrones Chinese battery manufacturer CATL’s roughly $5.3 billion float as the biggest IPO of 2025.

Strong demand allowed Medline and its private‑equity backers to increase the size of the deal from earlier plans to sell about 179 million shares. The IPO was upsized from an initial target of 179 million shares after robust institutional demand, ultimately reaching more than 216 million shares at the top of the price range. Medline listed on the Nasdaq under the ticker “MDLN”, joining a roster of healthcare and medtech names that have historically found receptive investor audiences on the exchange.

Shares jump 41% in debut, valuing Medline above $50bn

Investor enthusiasm was evident from the opening bell. Medline shares opened at about $35 and climbed to close near $41, a gain of roughly 41% versus the $29 offer price. Medline’s stock opened at $35 and finished its first day around $41, about 41% above the IPO price, underscoring pent‑up demand for large, high‑quality offerings after several years of subdued issuance.

At the debut closing price, Medline’s equity was valued north of $50 billion, giving the group one of the heftiest market capitalisations in the global healthcare‑supplies sector. Based on a Class A share count of around 1.3 billion, Medline’s market value exceeded $50 billion following its first trading session. That valuation puts Medline in the same ballpark as some of the largest global medical‑technology and distribution companies.

Private equity’s largest-ever IPO cash‑out – without selling a share

The listing is also a milestone for private equity. Medline was acquired in 2021 by a consortium led by Blackstone, Carlyle and Hellman & Friedman in a leveraged buyout that valued the business at about $34 billion. A group led by Blackstone, Carlyle and Hellman & Friedman bought Medline in 2021 in a roughly $34 billion leveraged buyout, one of the largest LBOs completed since the financial crisis.

Yet in a sign of confidence, the buyout funds did not sell stock in the IPO; instead, the company issued new shares and will channel the proceeds towards deleveraging its balance sheet. Medline’s IPO proceeds are earmarked primarily for debt reduction, with the company planning to pay down several billion dollars of its roughly $15–17 billion debt load rather than providing an immediate exit for private‑equity sponsors. The strategy offers equity investors a clearer path to value creation through lower interest costs and improved credit metrics.

A sprawling healthcare‑supply empire

Founded in 1966 and headquartered in Northfield, Illinois, Medline sits at the heart of the healthcare supply chain, manufacturing and distributing everything from gloves and gowns to wheelchairs and hospital baby blankets. The company supplies roughly 335,000 medical and surgical products to customers in more than 100 countries and employs over 43,000 people worldwide.

Its vertically integrated model spans 26 North American manufacturing sites and 69 distribution centres, supported by a fleet of more than 2,000 trucks that can reach about 95% of U.S. customers with next‑day delivery. Medline operates 26 production facilities and 69 distribution centres, with a logistics network that provides next‑day service to approximately 95% of U.S. healthcare providers. This scale has helped the company consistently gain market share in a fragmented industry.

Solid growth – but with heavy debt and tariff risks

Medline’s growth trajectory has been robust. For the first nine months of 2025, the company generated about $20.6 billion in revenue, up from roughly $18.7 billion in the same period a year earlier, while net income climbed to around $1 billion. In the nine months to late September 2025, Medline reported revenue of about $20.6 billion and net income of roughly $1.0 billion, up from $18.7 billion and $0.98–1.0 billion respectively a year earlier. Over the past half‑century, Medline estimates an 18% compound annual growth rate in sales. The company cites a roughly 18% compound annual sales growth rate over about 50 years since its founding in 1966.

Still, the balance sheet remains a central investor focus. The company emerged from its 2021 buyout carrying about $16–17 billion of total debt; even after the IPO, Medline will remain more leveraged than many listed healthcare peers. Medline disclosed total debt of roughly $16.8 billion as of late September 2025, and plans to use IPO proceeds to retire around $4 billion of that burden in the near term. Management has set a medium‑term goal of reducing net debt to less than three times earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (Ebitda), a leverage level more in line with investment‑grade comparables in the sector.

Tariffs add another layer of complexity. Medline sources a significant share of its products from Asia, particularly China, exposing it to shifting trade policy. In filings related to the offering, Medline flagged expected tariff costs of about $325–375 million in its 2025 fiscal year and an estimated $150–200 million impact in 2026 tied to U.S. import duties on medical goods from Asia. Any escalation in trade tensions could pressure margins and complicate efforts to bring leverage down.

Signal for a fragile but improving IPO market

For global capital markets, Medline’s debut is more than a single‑company success story. It caps the strongest year for new issues since 2021 and suggests that investor appetite for large, mature businesses with clear cash‑flow visibility is returning. Analysts note that Medline’s offering is the largest U.S. IPO since Rivian’s 2021 deal and among the biggest private‑equity‑backed flotations ever, underscoring a cautious reopening of the window for sizeable listings after a multi‑year slump. Bankers and sponsors hope that a strong aftermarket performance will embolden other large issuers in the pipeline to press ahead in 2026.

The reception also illustrates how the market currently discriminates between profit‑making, cash‑generative companies and loss‑making growth stories. Medline has logged decades of positive earnings, a sticky customer base spanning hospitals, nursing homes and clinics, and a business model executives like to compare to wholesale club Costco, with an emphasis on private‑label products and long‑term supply contracts. Medline’s chief executive has likened the company’s model to that of Costco, pointing to its focus on private‑label brands, scale purchasing and tight supply‑chain integration as drivers of resilience through economic cycles. That combination of defensiveness and growth proved highly attractive to institutional investors seeking shelter from macroeconomic volatility.

Conclusion: A defining test case for 2026’s deal pipeline

Medline’s 41% first‑day share price surge, underpinned by a $6.3 billion fundraise and a valuation above $50 billion, marks a defining moment for 2025’s equity capital markets. It delivers long‑awaited validation to private‑equity owners under pressure to crystallise returns, while offering public investors access to a rare combination of scale, profitability and structural growth in healthcare demand.

Whether Medline can sustain its momentum will depend on its ability to deleverage quickly, navigate tariff headwinds and maintain its long record of consistent growth. But for now, the company’s triumphant return to public markets sends a clear signal: the IPO window for large, established issuers is not just open again—it is firmly back in business.