What's Happening With Boston Scientific Stock?

Forbes

16-06-2025

CHONGQING, CHINA - APRIL 20: In this photo illustration, the logo of Boston Scientific Corporation ... More is displayed on a smartphone screen, with the company's branding and slogan Advancing science for life in the background, representing the American biomedical and biotechnology engineering firm known for developing medical devices used in interventional medical specialties, on April 20, 2025, in Chongqing, China. (Photo by)
Boston Scientific (NYSE:BSX) has experienced a stock price increase of over 30% in the last twelve months, greatly exceeding the S&P 500's gain of 9%. This remarkable performance can be credited to the launch of new products, which have enhanced sales growth and widened profit margins. Nonetheless, the pivotal question for investors is whether the BSX stock, currently priced at around $100, offers a worthwhile buying opportunity. We believe that at its current valuation, Boston Scientific seems relatively overpriced, especially when compared to the broader market and its historical performance metrics. That being said, if you are looking for potential upside with less volatility than individual stocks, the Trefis High-Quality portfolio serves as an option – having outperformed the S&P 500 and yielding returns of over 91% since its inception. Additionally, take a look at – Will Adobe Stock See Higher Levels?
When examining Boston Scientific's valuation in relation to the S&P 500, the stock appears quite pricey across essential metrics. The company's price-to-sales (P/S) ratio is at 8.3, notably greater than the S&P 500's 3.0. Likewise, its price-to-free cash flow (P/FCF) ratio of 38.0 significantly surpasses the benchmark's 20.5. Moreover, Boston Scientific's price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio stands at a notable 71.4, as opposed to the S&P 500's 26.4. These numbers collectively suggest that investors are paying a considerable premium for Boston Scientific's sales, profits, and cash flow relative to the overall market. Check out – Boston Scientific's Valuation Ratios – for further insights.
Boston Scientific has shown significant revenue growth in recent years. Over the past three years, its revenues have increased at an average rate of 13.1%, dramatically outpacing the S&P 500's rise of 5.5%. More recently, Boston Scientific's revenues increased by 19.4% over the past twelve months, climbing from $15 billion to $18 billion. In its latest quarter, quarterly revenues experienced a solid rise of 20.9%, growing from $3.9 billion to $4.7 billion compared to the previous year. These figures highlight the company's robust operational momentum in driving sales.
The company's profit margins typically reside around the average for firms within the Trefis coverage universe. Over the past four quarters, Boston Scientific's operating income totaled $3.2 billion, yielding a solid operating margin of 18.5%, which exceeds the S&P 500's 13.2%. Boston Scientific's Operating Cash Flow (OCF) for the same period was $3.8 billion, reflecting a good OCF margin of 21.7%, compared to the S&P 500's 14.9%. Boston Scientific's Net Income over the last four quarters was $2.0 billion, resulting in a moderate net income margin of 11.6%, which aligns with the average of the S&P 500.
Boston Scientific's balance sheet appears to be moderate. As of the latest quarter, the company's debt was $12 billion, in contrast to a significant market capitalization of $147 billion (as of June 13, 2025). This results in a strong Debt-to-Equity Ratio of 8.1%, which is substantially lower and more favorable than the S&P 500's 19.9%. However, a slight concern arises from its cash position; cash and cash equivalents totaling $725 million yield a suboptimal Cash-to-Assets Ratio of 1.8% compared to total assets of $40 billion, and significantly lower than the S&P 500's 13.8%.
Boston Scientific's stock has exhibited mixed performance during previous market downturns, sometimes performing worse than the S&P 500. During the "Inflation Shock" of 2022, BSX stock faced a decline of 25.2%, closely mirroring the S&P 500's decrease of 25.4%, but fully recovered by December 2022. The COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 had a more severe impact, causing BSX stock to drop 43.5% in contrast to a 33.9% fall for the S&P 500; however, it regained its value by August 2021. The Global Financial Crisis of 2008 posed the most significant challenge, with BSX stock plunging 70.5% compared to the S&P 500's decline of 56.8%, and it took until November 2015 for the stock to completely recover.
In conclusion, Boston Scientific demonstrates 'Extremely Strong' growth, 'Strong' profitability, and a 'Neutral' financial stability profile. Nevertheless, its 'Weak' resilience during downturns and, particularly, its 'Very High' valuation contribute to an 'Overall Neutral' evaluation. The current price-to-sales ratio of 8.3x is significantly higher than Boston Scientific's historical average of 5.9x, indicating that the stock is currently trading at a substantial premium. Although Boston Scientific's improving sales growth and profitability are encouraging factors that may continue attracting investor interest, the high valuation at this time poses an increased risk.
For investors looking for upside with reduced volatility relative to individual stocks, portfolios such as the Trefis High Quality (HQ) portfolio and Reinforced Value (RV) Portfolio provide alternatives. The HQ Portfolio, focusing on risk assessment and consisting of 30 stocks, has a proven history of outperforming the S&P 500 over the last four years, yielding superior returns with less risk. Similarly, the RV Portfolio, which is rebalanced quarterly with a mix of large, mid, and small-cap stocks, has outperformed its all-cap stocks benchmark.