BOSTON SCIENTIFIC CORP (BSX)

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AI: Fair-priced

Price checkAt $51.83, the shares look fairly priced, with little room for execution mistakes.

Boston Scientific closed at $51.83 on August 14, 2026. Management’s adjusted 2026 earnings guide—which excludes selected acquisition, restructuring and other charges—is $3.28-$3.32 a share, making the price about 15.7 times the midpoint. It is about 21 times roughly $2.47 of trailing reported earnings. Fiscal 2025 free cash flow, meaning cash left after operations and capital spending, was $3.66 billion, also implying roughly 21 times cash flow after the share repurchase. A simple 8% return model needs about 7% yearly cash growth, leaving little bargain cushion.

Big pictureSales and cash keep growing, but slower device demand and heavier debt reduce protection.

Revenue rose from $9.91 billion in 2020 to $20.07 billion in 2025, while operating income moved from an $80 million loss to $3.61 billion. Free cash flow rose from $2.65 billion in 2024 to $3.66 billion in 2025, then held near $3.63 billion over the latest twelve months. Medical procedures are less tied to economic cycles than consumer spending, but product adoption can swing, as Watchman shows. June net debt was $10.38 billion, about 1.9 times earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization; current assets covered current liabilities 1.24 times. Penumbra could add roughly $11 billion of debt, sharply reducing protection.

Business strengthA broad device portfolio funds research, yet recent spending mixes smart reinvestment with aggressive dealmaking.

Second-quarter sales grew 5.4% without currency and acquisition effects in MedSurg and 7.8% in Cardiovascular, showing strength beyond one product. Research spending reached $2.05 billion in 2025, about 10% of sales, while gross profit remained near 69% of sales. Capital allocation is more debatable: the $2 billion buyback retired about 40 million shares, nearly offsetting the roughly 43.9 million shares expected for Penumbra. Yet the deal also needs about $11 billion of cash and new debt. Stock compensation was $299 million in 2025, equal to 8% of free cash flow, creating modest ongoing dilution.

What could change the storyFaster heart-device growth would create upside; another guidance cut or costly acquisition would break the case.

The bull case needs Watchman procedures and the Farapulse heart-rhythm franchise to stabilize, companywide sales growth to return above roughly 7%, and planned cost cuts to lift cash faster than sales. The bear case is concrete: third-quarter sales growth is guided to only 3%-5%, Watchman demand has weakened, and Penumbra costs $14.5 billion—more than ten times its roughly $1.4 billion 2025 revenue. Boston Scientific expects that deal to reduce adjusted earnings by $0.06-$0.08 a share in its first full year. Another guidance cut or slower debt repayment would make today’s valuation too generous.

$51.83 price considered

AI: News

Watchman slowdown deepensFalling stand-alone Watchman use exposed a product-growth slowdown and erased confidence in earlier forecasts.

On May 27, 2026, management said stand-alone Watchman procedures had declined since February and expected United States Watchman revenue to stay roughly flat from the first through third quarters, although combined Watchman-ablation procedures were growing. The company maintained its broader 6.5%-8% organic growth range, meaning growth excluding currency and recent deals. Shares fell about 10% that day. The timing strongly links the move to the comments, though market prices can reflect other news too.

Quarterly outlook resetStrong quarterly results could not offset another forecast cut tied to weaker Watchman demand.

Before the market opened on July 29, 2026, Boston Scientific reported $5.442 billion of quarterly sales, up 7.5%, and adjusted earnings of $0.86 a share, above its $0.82-$0.84 target. It nevertheless cut 2026 sales growth to 5.5%-6.5% from 7%-8.5% and adjusted earnings to $3.28-$3.32 from $3.34-$3.41. Shares opened 7.4% below the prior close, then recovered to finish almost unchanged. The release timing supports an earnings-related reaction, but does not prove a single cause.

Penumbra deal advancesPenumbra shareholders approved the large acquisition, shifting attention to antitrust clearance and future debt.

On May 6, 2026, Penumbra holders approved the merger by 28.56 million votes to 85,334, satisfying the shareholder condition; regulatory clearances were still required. The $14.5 billion purchase is expected to use about $11 billion of cash and new debt plus roughly 43.9 million Boston Scientific shares. Management expects the deal to reduce adjusted earnings by $0.06-$0.08 a share in the first full year. Penumbra adds faster-growing clot-removal devices, but the financing weakens downside protection.

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Free cash flow

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Total cash / debt

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Financial statements

	2025	2024	2023	2022	2021	2020	2019	2018	2017	2016	2015	2014	2013	2012	2011	2010	2009	2008	2007
Revenue	$20.07B	$16.75B	$14.24B	$12.68B	$11.89B	$9.91B	$10.73B	$9.82B	$9.05B	$8.39B	$8.07B	$7.46B	$7.07B	$6.96B	$7.62B	$7.81B	$8.19B	$8.05B	$8.36B
Gross profit	$13.85B	$11.49B	$9.90B	$8.73B	$8.18B	$6.45B	$7.62B	$7.01B	$6.46B	$5.96B	$5.30B	$5.17B	$4.97B	$4.90B	$4.96B	$5.21B	$5.61B	$5.58B	$6.01B
Research & development	$2.05B	$1.61B	$1.41B	$1.32B	$1.20B	$1.14B	$1.17B	$1.11B	$997.0M	$920.0M	$876.0M	$817.0M	$861.0M	$886.0M	$895.0M	$939.0M	$1.03B	$1.01B	$1.09B
Operating expenses	$10.24B	$8.89B	$7.55B	$7.08B	$6.98B	$6.53B	$6.10B	$5.50B	$5.17B	$5.51B	$5.59B	$5.47B	$4.85B	$8.77B	$4.06B	$5.86B	$6.51B	$7.09B	$6.03B
Operating income	$3.61B	$2.60B	$2.34B	$1.65B	$1.20B	−$80.0M	$1.52B	$1.51B	$1.28B	$447.0M	−$283.0M	−$301.0M	$120.0M	−$3.87B	$904.0M	−$656.0M	−$894.0M	−$1.50B	−$14.0M
EBITDAderived	$4.98B	$3.87B	$3.54B	$2.79B	$2.29B	$1.04B	$2.53B	$2.40B	$2.13B	$1.26B	$486.0M	$424.0M	$809.0M	−$3.19B	$1.62B	$160.0M	−$60.0M	−$641.0M	$904.0M
Net income	$2.89B	$1.85B	$1.59B	$698.0M	$1.04B	−$82.0M	$4.70B	$1.67B	$104.0M	$347.0M	−$239.0M	−$119.0M	−$121.0M	−$4.07B	$441.0M	−$1.06B	−$1.02B	−$2.04B	−$495.0M
Basic EPSper diluted share	$1.96	$1.26	$1.08	$0.45	$0.69	-$0.08	$3.38	$1.21	$0.08	$0.26	-$0.18	-$0.09	-$0.09	-$2.89	$0.29	-$0.70	-$0.68	-$1.36	-$0.33
Diluted EPSper diluted share	$1.94	$1.25	$1.07	$0.45	$0.69	-$0.08	$3.33	$1.19	$0.08	$0.25	-$0.18	-$0.09	-$0.09	-$2.89	$0.29	-$0.70	-$0.68	-$1.36	-$0.33

Review source filings at SEC.gov ↗

Insider buys & sells

Jul 1, 2024–Jun 30, 2026

Buys5$558.5K disclosed value

Sells (SEC code S)74$193.92M disclosed value

Transaction	Insider	Type	Shares	Price	Value	Owned after
May 20, 2026Form 4	Pegus CherylDirector	BuyCommon Stock	1.8K	$56.49	$100.0K	1.8K
May 20, 2026Form 4	LUDWIG EDWARD JDirector	BuyCommon Stock	3.6K	$56.68	$202.9K	25.4K
May 20, 2026Form 4	Habiger David CDirector	BuyCommon Stock	2.3K	$55.92	$125.8K	13.9K
May 19, 2026Form 4	Habiger David CDirector	BuyCommon Stock	2.2K	$56.95	$125.3K	11.6K
Feb 2, 2026Form 4 · 10b5-1	Mahoney Michael FChairman, President & CEO	SellCommon Stock	159.7K	$93.49	$14.93M	1.41M

Review ownership filings at SEC.gov ↗

BOSTON SCIENTIFIC CORP (BSX)

Financial charts

Financial statements

Insider buys & sells