Boston Scientific Co. (NYSE:BSX) Short Interest Up 8.3% in March

Boston Scientific Co. (NYSE:BSX) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest during the month of March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totalling 12,430,000 shares, an increase of 8.3% from the March 15th total of 11,480,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 6,410,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 1.9 days.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have issued reports on BSX. StockNews.com lowered Boston Scientific from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, March 16th. Oppenheimer upped their price objective on Boston Scientific from $58.00 to $68.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 1st. Needham & Company LLC upped their price objective on Boston Scientific from $60.00 to $71.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 1st. Citigroup upped their price objective on Boston Scientific from $71.00 to $79.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Boston Scientific from $60.00 to $72.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 1st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eighteen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Boston Scientific has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $68.50.

Boston Scientific Stock Performance

NYSE:BSX traded down $0.16 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $67.96. 6,177,156 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 6,375,025. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $67.11 and a two-hundred day moving average of $59.63. Boston Scientific has a 12 month low of $48.35 and a 12 month high of $69.21. The firm has a market capitalization of $99.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 63.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 0.78. The company has a current ratio of 1.32, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44.

Boston Scientific (NYSE:BSX) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, January 31st. The medical equipment provider reported $0.55 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.51 by $0.04. Boston Scientific had a return on equity of 15.99% and a net margin of 11.19%. The firm had revenue of $3.73 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.59 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.45 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Boston Scientific will post 2.25 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Daniel J. Brennan sold 13,662 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.86, for a total transaction of $899,779.32. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 271,542 shares in the company, valued at approximately $17,883,756.12. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other Boston Scientific news, EVP John Bradley Sorenson sold 16,351 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.30, for a total transaction of $1,133,124.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 50,638 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,509,213.40. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Daniel J. Brennan sold 13,662 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.86, for a total value of $899,779.32. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 271,542 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $17,883,756.12. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 50,979 shares of company stock worth $3,418,529 in the last three months. 0.50% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Boston Scientific

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Boston Scientific in the 1st quarter worth approximately $31,000. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC bought a new position in Boston Scientific in the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Boston Scientific in the 4th quarter worth $32,000. Sachetta LLC bought a new position in shares of Boston Scientific in the 4th quarter worth $32,000. Finally, Jones Financial Companies Lllp boosted its position in shares of Boston Scientific by 53.0% in the 4th quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 557 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 193 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 89.07% of the company’s stock.

Boston Scientific Company Profile

Boston Scientific Corporation develops, manufactures, and markets medical devices for use in various interventional medical specialties worldwide. It operates through two segments, MedSurg and Cardiovascular. The company offers devices to diagnose and treat gastrointestinal and pulmonary conditions, such as resolution clips, biliary stent systems, stents and electrocautery enhanced delivery systems, direct visualization systems, digital catheters, and single-use duodenoscopes; devices to treat urological conditions, including ureteral stents, catheters, baskets, guidewires, sheaths, balloons, single-use digital flexible ureteroscopes, holmium laser systems, artificial urinary sphincter, laser system, fiber, and hydrogel systems; and devices to treat neurological movement disorders and manage chronic pain, such as spinal cord stimulator system, proprietary programming software, radiofrequency generator, indirect decompression systems, practice optimization tools, and deep brain stimulation system.