TransMedics Stock Is Up 104% Over the Last Year: Is It Too Late to Buy for 2026?

2026-03-08 05:42:00 ET

Shares of transformational organ transplant company TransMedics Group (NASDAQ: TMDX) are up 104% over the last year as the company continues to become the clear leader in its niche. While it is easy for investors to feel like they missed their opportunity to buy a stock once it doubles, The Motley Fool's co-founder, David Gardner -- and his six traits of a Rule Breaker stock -- say the exact opposite is true. Strong past price appreciation is one of the traits that helps investors find the most promising growth stocks on the market, which I believe TransMedics will continue to be. Best yet for investors: This isn't the only Rule Breaker trait that TransMedics is home to.

TransMedics offers a turnkey, end-to-end offering for organ transplants through its Organ Care System (OCS) and its National OCS Program (NOP). Its OCS is a next-gen array of solutions that "replicate many aspects of the organ's natural living and functioning environment outside of the human body," keeping the donated organs much healthier than traditional ice storage methods. Meanwhile, TransMedics' NOP helps streamline operations on the clinical side, while the company's logistics network of 22 aircraft and 18 hubs across the U.S. provides expedited transportation for organs. Powered by these new innovative solutions, TransMedics looks like a true Rule Breaker.

TransMedics' leading-edge OCS makes it a first mover in its industry, where it holds roughly a 20% market share in U.S. transplants for livers, hearts, and lungs. While the organ donation industry isn't an "emerging" market per se, there is an immense opportunity for optimization. Only 20% of hearts, 24% of lungs, and 61% of livers donated in the U.S. get utilized.

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