Boston Scientific Sees Unusually High Options Volume (NYSE:BSX)

Boston Scientific Co. (NYSE:BSX) saw some unusual options trading on Tuesday. Investors acquired 20,981 put options on the company. This is an increase of 64% compared to the typical daily volume of 12,760 put options.

Boston Scientific Stock Down 1.8%

BSX stock opened at $104.67 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $154.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 83.73, a P/E/G ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 1.08 and a quick ratio of 1.02. Boston Scientific has a 1-year low of $71.88 and a 1-year high of $107.17. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $99.76 and a 200-day moving average price of $97.02.

Boston Scientific (NYSE:BSX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 23rd. The medical equipment provider reported $0.75 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.67 by $0.08. The company had revenue of $4.66 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.57 billion. Boston Scientific had a return on equity of 17.80% and a net margin of 11.07%. Boston Scientific’s revenue for the quarter was up 20.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.56 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that Boston Scientific will post 2.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Boston Scientific

In other news, EVP Arthur C. Butcher sold 17,314 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $102.06, for a total transaction of $1,767,066.84. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 22,235 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,269,304.10. The trade was a 43.78% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Michael F. Mahoney sold 164,443 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $102.48, for a total value of $16,852,118.64. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,535,706 shares in the company, valued at $157,379,150.88. This trade represents a 9.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 195,830 shares of company stock valued at $20,043,415. Corporate insiders own 0.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Boston Scientific

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of BSX. Park Avenue Securities LLC increased its position in Boston Scientific by 12.0% during the fourth quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 12,869 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $1,149,000 after acquiring an additional 1,381 shares during the last quarter. Procyon Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Boston Scientific in the fourth quarter worth about $208,000. HB Wealth Management LLC increased its position in Boston Scientific by 5.9% in the fourth quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC now owns 30,036 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $2,683,000 after buying an additional 1,676 shares in the last quarter. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC purchased a new stake in Boston Scientific in the fourth quarter worth about $658,000. Finally, Grove Bank & Trust increased its position in Boston Scientific by 4.4% in the fourth quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 2,923 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $261,000 after buying an additional 122 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.07% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. UBS Group boosted their target price on Boston Scientific from $105.00 to $130.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Argus set a $130.00 target price on Boston Scientific in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on Boston Scientific from $116.00 to $120.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Boston Scientific from $100.00 to $118.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Barclays lifted their price target on Boston Scientific from $118.00 to $125.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Twenty-three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $114.74.

About Boston Scientific

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.