LGT Fund Management Co Ltd. Boosts Holdings in Boston Scientific Corporation (NYSE:BSX)

Key Points

• LGT Fund Management Co Ltd. significantly increased its stake in Boston Scientific Corporation by 1,299.9% during Q1, owning a total of 58,304 shares valued at approximately $5.88 million.
• Insider trading activity showed that two executive vice presidents sold a combined total of 73,685 shares of Boston Scientific, which resulted in a substantial decrease in their ownership percentage.
• Boston Scientific reported a strong financial performance, with Q2 revenues of $5.06 billion, surpassing analyst expectations and reflecting a year-over-year revenue increase of 22.8%.

LGT Fund Management Co Ltd. increased its stake in Boston Scientific Corporation (NYSE:BSX - Free Report) by 1,299.9% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 58,304 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock after purchasing an additional 54,139 shares during the quarter. LGT Fund Management Co Ltd.'s holdings in Boston Scientific were worth $5,882,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Capital World Investors increased its holdings in Boston Scientific by 28.7% during the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 27,899,903 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $2,492,041,000 after acquiring an additional 6,216,199 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in Boston Scientific by 11,720.3% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,577,887 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $260,057,000 after acquiring an additional 2,556,078 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp increased its holdings in Boston Scientific by 18.0% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 14,595,627 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $1,303,681,000 after acquiring an additional 2,221,790 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its holdings in Boston Scientific by 18.7% during the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 10,839,362 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $968,172,000 after acquiring an additional 1,709,461 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in Boston Scientific by 1.3% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 134,588,729 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $13,577,311,000 after acquiring an additional 1,697,945 shares in the last quarter. 89.07% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have weighed in on BSX. BTIG Research restated a "buy" rating and set a $124.00 target price on shares of Boston Scientific in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Evercore ISI lifted their price target on shares of Boston Scientific from $110.00 to $112.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $115.00 price target on shares of Boston Scientific in a report on Wednesday, May 28th. Raymond James Financial lifted their price target on shares of Boston Scientific from $121.00 to $124.00 and gave the stock a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Thursday, July 24th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a "hold" rating on shares of Boston Scientific in a report on Monday, July 21st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-two have issued a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Boston Scientific presently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $117.50.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Joseph Michael Fitzgerald sold 56,372 shares of Boston Scientific stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $102.88, for a total transaction of $5,799,551.36. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 178,342 shares in the company, valued at $18,347,824.96. This trade represents a 24.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Edward J. Ludwig sold 4,000 shares of Boston Scientific stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $106.03, for a total transaction of $424,120.00. Following the sale, the director owned 18,479 shares in the company, valued at $1,959,328.37. This represents a 17.79% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 345,029 shares of company stock valued at $35,976,603 over the last quarter. 0.50% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Boston Scientific Trading Up 1.6%

BSX stock traded up $1.65 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $104.15. 7,246,071 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 7,074,138. The company has a market capitalization of $154.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 61.99, a PEG ratio of 2.47 and a beta of 0.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a current ratio of 1.37 and a quick ratio of 0.82. Boston Scientific Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $76.60 and a fifty-two week high of $108.94. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $103.54 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $102.09.

Boston Scientific (NYSE:BSX - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 23rd. The medical equipment provider reported $0.75 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.72 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $5.06 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.89 billion. Boston Scientific had a net margin of 13.55% and a return on equity of 19.21%. Boston Scientific's revenue was up 22.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.62 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that Boston Scientific Corporation will post 2.85 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.