Daiwa Securities Group Inc. Increases Stock Position in Boston Scientific Co. (NYSE:BSX)

Daiwa Securities Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Boston Scientific Co. (NYSE:BSX) by 5.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 158,722 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 7,796 shares during the period. Daiwa Securities Group Inc.’s holdings in Boston Scientific were worth $9,176,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Victory Capital Management Inc. boosted its position in Boston Scientific by 5.6% during the 3rd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 518,047 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $27,353,000 after purchasing an additional 27,620 shares during the period. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System acquired a new position in Boston Scientific in the 4th quarter worth $5,116,000. Glenmede Trust Co. NA lifted its holdings in Boston Scientific by 12.1% in the 3rd quarter. Glenmede Trust Co. NA now owns 10,442 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $551,000 after buying an additional 1,123 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Boston Scientific by 2.1% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,868,991 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $98,683,000 after buying an additional 38,249 shares in the last quarter. Finally, HealthInvest Partners AB acquired a new position in Boston Scientific in the 4th quarter worth $3,746,000. 89.07% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have commented on BSX. Mizuho upgraded shares of Boston Scientific from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $65.00 to $80.00 in a report on Thursday, February 1st. Evercore ISI upped their target price on shares of Boston Scientific from $68.00 to $72.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 4th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Boston Scientific from $70.00 to $72.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 1st. Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on shares of Boston Scientific from $70.00 to $78.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday. Finally, Truist Financial upped their target price on shares of Boston Scientific from $59.00 to $66.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, December 22nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eighteen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $68.50.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Wendy Carruthers sold 6,983 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $66.89, for a total value of $467,092.87. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 56,508 shares in the company, valued at $3,779,820.12. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, EVP Wendy Carruthers sold 6,983 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $66.89, for a total transaction of $467,092.87. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 56,508 shares in the company, valued at $3,779,820.12. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CFO Daniel J. Brennan sold 13,662 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the chief financial officer now owns 271,542 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $17,883,756.12. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 50,979 shares of company stock worth $3,418,529 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.50% of the company’s stock.

Boston Scientific Trading Down 0.8 %

Boston Scientific stock opened at $67.42 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $67.21 and a 200-day simple moving average of $59.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 1.32 and a quick ratio of 0.82. The stock has a market capitalization of $98.91 billion, a PE ratio of 63.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.38 and a beta of 0.78. Boston Scientific Co. has a 12-month low of $48.35 and a 12-month high of $69.21.

Boston Scientific (NYSE:BSX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 31st. The medical equipment provider reported $0.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.51 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $3.73 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.59 billion. Boston Scientific had a net margin of 11.19% and a return on equity of 15.99%. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.45 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Boston Scientific Co. will post 2.25 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Boston Scientific 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.