Boston Scientific Stock Rating Downgrade

The investment firm StockNews.com has downgraded its rating for Boston Scientific (NYSE: BSX) from a buy to a hold in a recent research report released to investors on Monday.

Several other equity analysts have also made their assessments on Boston Scientific in recent weeks. Mizuho increased its price target for the company's stock from $100.00 to $110.00 and assigned it an "outperform" rating on Thursday, October 24th. Similarly, Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a "hold" rating in their note to investors dated Thursday, October 31st. In addition, Morgan Stanley raised its target price from $92.00 to $100.00, also categorizing the stock with an "overweight" rating in a report on October 24th. Truist Financial increased its price target from $90.00 to $100.00 and assigned a "buy" rating in a research report issued on Monday, October 14th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its target price from $82.00 to $85.00, giving the company an "overweight" rating in a report published on Thursday, July 25th.

Currently, four research analysts rate the stock as a hold, nineteen have given it a buy rating, and one has assigned a strong buy rating. According to MarketBeat.com, Boston Scientific maintains an average rating of "Moderate Buy" with an average price target of $93.39.

Boston Scientific Stock Performance Overview

On Monday, Boston Scientific shares opened at $86.42. The stock's performance has seen a low of $50.84 and a high of $88.79 over the past year. Its 50-day moving average stands at $84.35, while the 200-day moving average is at $78.74. Financial indicators show a current ratio of 1.61, a quick ratio of 1.14, and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44. The company has a market capitalization of approximately $127.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 71.42, a price/earnings to growth ratio of 2.46, and a beta of 0.79.

Boston Scientific reported its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The medical device company achieved earnings per share (EPS) of $0.63 for the quarter, surpassing analysts' expectations of $0.59 by $0.04. The revenue for this quarter was $4.21 billion, compared to analysts' predictions of $4.04 billion. The company posted a net margin of 11.26% and a return on equity of 17.41%. Year over year, the business experienced a 19.3% increase in quarterly revenue. In the same quarter from the previous year, the company reported an EPS of $0.50. Analysts forecast that Boston Scientific will report an EPS of 2.46 for the current year.

Recent Insider Activity at Boston Scientific

In insider news, Executive Vice President Joseph Michael Fitzgerald sold 132,527 shares of Boston Scientific on Monday, October 7th, at an average price of $85.00, amounting to a total of $11,264,795.00. After this sale, Fitzgerald holds 160,467 shares in the company, worth approximately $13,639,695, indicating no percentage change in ownership. The transaction was reported in a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Additionally, another EVP, Wendy Carruthers, sold 6,983 shares on Tuesday, October 1st, at an average price of $83.86, totaling $585,594.38. After this sale, Carruthers owns 34,748 shares valued at $2,913,967.28, also showing no change in ownership percentage. Over the past 90 days, insiders have sold 309,270 shares of the company valued at approximately $26,196,718. Currently, corporate insiders own around 0.50% of Boston Scientific's stock.

Institutional Trading Trends

In recent trading activities, several hedge funds have adjusted their positions in Boston Scientific. Capital World Investors increased its holdings by 69.9% during the first quarter, now owning 16,008,085 shares of the medical equipment provider worth approximately $1,096,394,000 after acquiring an additional 6,588,256 shares. Marshall Wace LLP increased its position by 115.9% in the second quarter, owning 6,720,480 shares valued at $517,544,000 after buying an additional 3,608,158 shares. Furthermore, Capital Research Global Investors purchased new stakes valued at approximately $182,897,000 in the first quarter, while AustralianSuper Pty Ltd saw a significant increase in holdings by 4,292.3% during the third quarter, now owning 2,676,847 shares worth $224,320,000 after procuring 2,615,903 additional shares. Lastly, Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake by 1.6%, now owning 127,437,884 shares valued at $8,728,221,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds collectively own approximately 89.07% of Boston Scientific's stock.

About Boston Scientific Corporation

Boston Scientific Corporation is a global developer and manufacturer of medical devices used across various interventional medical specialties. The company operates through two segments, MedSurg and Cardiovascular. Boston Scientific provides a range of devices aimed at diagnosing and treating gastrointestinal and pulmonary conditions, including resolution clips, biliary stent systems, stents, electrocautery enhanced delivery systems, and more. They also offer devices for urological conditions and tools for treating neurological movement disorders and managing chronic pain, such as spinal cord stimulators and deep brain stimulation systems.

Boston, Scientific, Stock