Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV Increases Position in Boston Scientific Co. (NYSE:BSX)

Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV raised its position in shares of Boston Scientific Co. (NYSE:BSX) by 1.5% during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 58,969 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 888 shares during the period. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV’s holdings in Boston Scientific were worth $4,548,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Boston Scientific by 1.6% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 127,437,884 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $8,728,221,000 after buying an additional 1,988,082 shares in the last quarter. Capital World Investors grew its position in Boston Scientific by 69.9% during the first quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 16,008,085 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $1,096,394,000 after acquiring an additional 6,588,256 shares during the last quarter. Putnam Investments LLC raised its stake in shares of Boston Scientific by 110.5% during the fourth quarter. Putnam Investments LLC now owns 13,067,570 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $755,436,000 after acquiring an additional 6,859,280 shares in the last quarter. Vontobel Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Boston Scientific by 10.2% in the 4th quarter. Vontobel Asset Management Inc. now owns 10,974,569 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $668,472,000 after acquiring an additional 1,015,140 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board boosted its stake in shares of Boston Scientific by 15.0% in the 1st quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 7,897,203 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $540,879,000 after purchasing an additional 1,027,543 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 89.07% of the company’s stock.

Boston Scientific Trading Up 0.3 %

BSX opened at $83.92 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 1.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44. Boston Scientific Co. has a 52 week low of $48.35 and a 52 week high of $84.89. The stock has a market cap of $123.12 billion, a PE ratio of 70.52, a PEG ratio of 2.75 and a beta of 0.79. The business has a 50 day moving average of $78.72 and a 200-day moving average of $74.68.

Boston Scientific (NYSE:BSX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 24th. The medical equipment provider reported $0.62 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.58 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $4.12 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.02 billion. Boston Scientific had a return on equity of 16.59% and a net margin of 12.00%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.53 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that Boston Scientific Co. will post 2.4 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have weighed in on BSX. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Boston Scientific from $82.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 25th. The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on Boston Scientific in a research report on Thursday, May 30th. They set a “buy” rating and a $90.00 price target on the stock. Citigroup boosted their price objective on Boston Scientific from $90.00 to $92.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 22nd. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Boston Scientific from $79.00 to $92.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, July 15th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group upped their price target on shares of Boston Scientific from $83.00 to $88.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, July 25th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $86.65.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Wendy Carruthers sold 6,983 shares of Boston Scientific stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $74.12, for a total transaction of $517,579.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 40,188 shares in the company, valued at $2,978,734.56. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 20,949 shares of company stock worth $1,627,877. 0.50% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.