Boston Scientific Sales Rise 1.5% to $5.138 Billion in Third Quarter
Key Facts
Boston Scientific said on October 28 that sales reached $5.138 billion in the third quarter of 2026, up 1.5% on a reported, operational and organic basis from the same quarter a year earlier. The company said net income attributable to common shareholders was $582 million, or $0.40 a share, compared with $755 million and $0.51 a share a year earlier. Adjusted earnings per share were $0.73, compared with $0.75 in the year-earlier period. Management estimated that the cyber incident reduced quarterly revenue growth by about 300 basis points, or nearly $150 million, and cut adjusted earnings per share by $0.07. The results came as the company lowered its full-year sales growth outlook, with the incident expected to continue affecting the fourth quarter.
The company's July 29 guidance projected third-quarter reported and organic growth of between 3% and 5%, and adjusted earnings of between $0.80 and $0.82 a share. In the second quarter, the company reported sales of $5.442 billion, with operational and organic growth of 7.0% and adjusted earnings of $0.86 a share. Based on Investing.com estimates, sales exceeded expectations, at $5.138 billion versus an estimate of $5.12 billion, while adjusted earnings fell short of its estimate of $0.75. The company's shares fell 3.48% in premarket trading on October 28, according to the same site.
The overall growth reflects diverging performance across the company's businesses. MedSurg sales rose 0.6% on a reported basis and 0.7% on an operational and organic basis. The Cardiovascular segment posted growth of 1.9% on a reported, operational and organic basis. Geographically, operational sales rose 10.5% in Latin America and Canada and 6.1% in Europe, the Middle East and Africa. In the United States, reported and operational growth was 0.5%. By contrast, sales in Asia-Pacific fell 1.1% operationally and 0.6% on a reported basis, according to the company statement.
The company raised its 2026 fiscal-year sales growth estimate to about 4.25% on a reported basis and 3.75% on an organic basis, and expects adjusted earnings of between $3.16 and $3.18 a share. For the fourth quarter, it expects sales to decline between 1.0% and 3.0% on both reported and organic bases, and adjusted earnings of between $0.77 and $0.79 a share. On the earnings call, management said the incident could weigh on fourth-quarter revenue growth by about 200 to 300 basis points, with an estimated impact on earnings per share of between $0.04 and $0.05. The company estimated the incident's third-quarter impact at about $150 million in revenue, as well as a $0.07-per-share reduction in adjusted earnings. The incident was identified on August 25. The company said on September 9 that manufacturing, order fulfillment and shipping had been fully restored, and that products were moving through the distribution network at normal or higher levels, while it continued to work through backlogs and some customers could face temporary delays.
In a subsequent update, the company said an independent investigation by CrowdStrike found access to an external network device and then to a limited portion of the internal IT environment. The investigation found no evidence of ongoing attacker activity after the company's containment measures on August 25. It also found no evidence that the attacker accessed, prepared or exfiltrated data from the systems and applications covered by the investigation, including customer and patient data. Separately from the incident's impact, Reuters reported in July that the forecast cut at the time was linked to slower growth in the Watchman device and intensifying competition in U.S. electrophysiology. The report said management expected both trends to continue through 2027 and saw earnings and revenue growth improving significantly in 2028.
Boston Scientific said on October 28 that it had begun enrolling participants in the Elite AF trial to evaluate the safety and effectiveness of the next-generation WATCHMAN Elite device. It also said it had received FDA 510(k) clearance for two technologies in its StoneSmart system: a ureteral access sheath that enables suction to remove kidney stone fragments, and a scope to monitor fluid temperature during the procedure. Cumulative revenue reached $15.784 billion in the nine months ended September 30, 2026, compared with $14.788 billion in the year-earlier period. EL7 data showed the company's shares closed at $45.06 on October 27 and then at $42.43 on October 28. The company had scheduled its conference call with analysts for 8:00 a.m. Eastern time on October 28 and said a recording would remain available on its website for about a year.