Health and Healthcare

Abbott's (ABT) Hammers Boston Scientific (BSX)

Boston Scientific (BSX) has been the leader in sales of stents, those little mess tubes that keep arteries open. Recent studies show that the devices are more dangerous than most doctors had believed. That has hurt sales and the BSX shares.

Now Abbott (ABT) is taking a stent of its own (the Xience) to the FDA. Some data show it may be better than the flagship Boston Scientific product call Taxus. If further review bears this out, BSX is in for another beating.

A JP Morgan analyst was recently quoted by The Associated Press as saying "The data presented by Abbott does show that Xience is statistically superior to Taxus, which is the market leader."

BSX shares are down 2.5% today to $12.37. If the FDA loves the new Abbott product, the stock may go lower.

Douglas A. McIntyre

Find a Qualified Financial Advisor (Sponsor)

Finding a qualified financial advisor doesn’t have to be hard. SmartAsset’s free tool matches you with up to 3 fiduciary financial advisors in your area in 5 minutes. Each advisor has been vetted by SmartAsset and is held to a fiduciary standard to act in your best interests. If you’re ready to be matched with local advisors that can help you achieve your financial goals, get started now.

Thank you for reading! Have some feedback for us?
Contact the 24/7 Wall St. editorial team.