2020年12月4日,恩裏克·傑文斯(Enrique Jevons)代表所有類似情況的其他人,個人提起了針對公司、邁克爾·F·馬霍尼(Michael F. Mahoney)和丹尼爾·J·布倫南(Daniel J. Brennan)的集體訴訟,起因是LOTUS Edge™ 主動脈瓣系統(LOTUS系統)在美國紐約東區地方法院的召回和養老。2020年12月14日,雙方同意將案件轉移到美國馬薩諸塞州地方法院。2020年12月16日,馬里亞諾·埃裏基埃洛(Mariano Errichiello)以個人身份及代表所有類似情況的其他人,在美國馬薩諸塞州地方法院提起了第二起實質上相似的集體訴訟,起訴公司、邁克爾·F·馬霍尼、約瑟夫·m·菲茨傑拉德(Joseph m. Fitzgerald)和丹尼爾·J·布倫南。隨後,在2021年3月30日,法院將兩起訴訟合併,並任命聯合資產管理控股公司(Union Asset Management Holding AG)爲首席原告。原告於2021年6月提交了一份修正訴狀,要求對指稱的集體給予未具體說明的補償性損害賠償以及不確定的衡平救濟。公司於2021年7月提交了一項駁回動議,2022年12月,法院部分批准並部分駁回了該動議。2023年10月23日,公司與首席原告達成了原則性和解協議。法院於2023年12月27日批准了擬議和解的初步批准,並於2024年4月23日批准了和解並撤銷了案件。
2021年2月8日,公司收到了股東弗拉基米爾·古辛斯基可撤銷信託的來信,要求公司董事會對公司董事和高管關於LOTUS系統的有效性和商業可行性所做的聲明進行調查。隨後,信託同意暫時擱置其要求,等待對上述集體訴訟的修正投訴的任何裁定性動議的結果。2021年7月26日、2021年7月29日和2023年2月13日,公司收到了代表Union Excavators Local 731養老基金、Diane Nachbaur和Frank Tripson這三位股東的來信,各自要求依據特拉華州《一般公司法》第220條訪問公司的某些賬簿和記錄,涉及LOTUS系統的業務、運營、有效性、商業可行性及相關事項。2023年4月7日,Diane Nachbaur在馬薩諸塞州地區法院對公司、Michael F. Mahoney、Nelda J. Connors、Charles J. Dockendorff、Yoshiaki Fujimori、Donna A. James、Edward J. Ludwig、David Roux、John E. Sununu、Ellen m. Zane、Joseph m. Fitzgerald、Daniel J. Brennan、Shawn McCarthy、Ian Meredith、Kevin Ballinger和Susan Vissers Lisa提起了股東衍生訴訟。2023年5月8日,法院暫時擱置了該案,直到聯合集體訴訟案件的結案。2023年10月18日,Frank Tripson在特拉華州衡平法院對公司、Michael F. Mahoney、Daniel J. Brennan、Joseph m. Fitzgerald、Shawn McCarthy、Kevin Ballinger、Ian Meredith、Susan Vissers Lisa、Nelda J. Connors、Charles J. Dockendorff、Yoshiaki Fujimori、Donna A. James、Edward J. Ludwig、Stephen P. MacMillan、David Roux、John E. Sununu和Ellen m. Zane提起了股東衍生訴訟。2023年12月15日,法院暫時擱置了該案,直至2024年3月31日。2024年3月26日,公司與所有原告達成了原則上的協議以解決相關事宜。
1Operational net sales growth excludes the impact of foreign currency fluctuations.
2Organic net sales growth excludes the impact of foreign currency fluctuations and net sales attributable to acquisitions and divestitures for which there are less than a full period of comparable net sales.
3Adjusted measures, including operational and organic net sales growth and adjusted net income attributable to Boston Scientific common stockholders, exclude certain items required by generally accepted accounting principles in the United States (GAAP), are not prepared in accordance with GAAP and should not be considered in isolation from, or as a replacement for, the most directly comparable GAAP measure. Refer to Additional Information for a discussion of management’s use of these non-GAAP financial measures.
The following section describes our net sales and results of operations by reportable segment and business. For additional information on our businesses and product offerings, refer to Item 1. Business of our most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K.
Three Months Ended September 30,
(in millions)
2024
2023
Increase/(Decrease)
Endoscopy
$
678
$
629
7.8%
Urology
532
483
10.3%
Neuromodulation
268
229
17.0%
MedSurg
1,479
1,341
10.3%
Cardiology
2,129
1,647
29.2%
Peripheral Interventions
602
538
11.8%
Cardiovascular
2,731
2,185
25.0%
Net Sales
$
4,209
$
3,527
19.4%
Nine Months Ended September 30,
(in millions)
2024
2023
Increase/(Decrease)
Endoscopy
$
1,996
$
1,836
8.7%
Urology
1,570
1,437
9.3%
Neuromodulation
807
708
14.0%
MedSurg
4,373
3,981
9.9%
Cardiology
6,048
4,958
22.0%
Peripheral Interventions
1,765
1,577
11.9%
Cardiovascular
7,813
6,534
19.6%
Net Sales
$
12,186
$
10,515
15.9%
MedSurg
Endoscopy
Our Endoscopy business develops and manufactures devices to diagnose and treat a broad range of gastrointestinal (GI) and pulmonary conditions with innovative, less-invasive technologies. Net sales of Endoscopy products of $678 million during the third quarter and $1.996 billion during the first nine months of 2024 represented 16 percent of our consolidated net sales in both periods. Endoscopy net sales increased $49 million, or 7.8 percent, during the third quarter and $160 million, or 8.7 percent, during the first nine months of 2024, compared to the prior year periods. During the third quarter of 2024, this increase included operational net sales growth of 7.9 percent and a negative impact of 10 basis points from foreign currency fluctuations, compared to the prior year period. During the first nine months of 2024, this increase included operational net sales growth of 9.4 percent and a negative impact of 70 basis points from foreign currency fluctuations, compared to the prior year period.
Operational net sales growth during the third quarter of 2024 included organic net sales growth of 7.4 percent and the positive impact of 50 basis points from our acquisition of the endoluminal vacuum therapy portfolio of Braun in the first quarter of 2024. Operational net sales in the first nine months of 2024 included organic net sales growth of 8.3 percent and the net positive impact of 110 basis points from our acquisition of Apollo and divestiture of our pathology business in the second quarter of 2023, and our acquisition of the endoluminal vacuum therapy portfolio of Braun in the first quarter of 2024.
Organic net sales growth in both periods was primarily driven by our biliary franchise led by our AXIOS™Stent and Delivery System, our single-use imaging franchise led by our EXALT™ Model D Single-Use Duodenoscope and our endoluminal surgery franchise.
Our Urology business develops and manufactures devices to treat various urological conditions for both male and female anatomies, including kidney stones, benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH), prostate cancer, erectile dysfunction and incontinence. Net sales of Urology products of $532 million during the third quarter and $1.570 billion during the first nine months of 2024 represented 13 percent of our consolidated net sales in both periods. Urology net sales increased $50 million, or 10.3 percent, during the third quarter and $133 million, or 9.3 percent, during the first nine months of 2024, compared to the prior year periods. During the third quarter of 2024, this increase included operational net sales growth of 10.4 percent and a negative impact of 10 basis points from foreign currency fluctuations, compared to the prior year period. During the first nine months of 2024, this increase included operational net sales growth of 9.8 percent and a negative impact of 50 basis points from foreign currency fluctuations, compared to the prior year period.
Operational net sales growth in the third quarter of 2024 was primarily driven by our prostate health and stone management franchises. Operational net sales growth in the first nine months of 2024 was primarily driven by our stone management and prosthetic urology franchises.
Neuromodulation
Our Neuromodulation business develops and manufactures devices to treat various neurological movement disorders and manage chronic pain. Net sales of Neuromodulation products of $268 million during the third quarter and $807 million during the first nine months of 2024 represented 6 percent and 7 percentof our consolidated net sales, respectively. Neuromodulation net sales increased $39 million, or 17.0 percent during the third quarter and $99 million, or 14.0 percent during the first nine months of 2024, compared to the prior year periods. During the third quarter of 2024, this increase included operational net sales growth of 17.1 percent and a negative impact of 10 basis points from foreign currency fluctuations, compared to the prior year period. During the first nine months of 2024, this increase included operational net sales growth of 14.4 percent and a negative impact of 40 basis points from foreign currency fluctuations, compared to the prior year period.
Operational net sales growth included organic net sales growth of 2.7 percent during the third quarter of 2024 and 1.7 percent during the first nine months of 2024, and the positive impact of 1,440 and 1,270 basis points, respectively, from our acquisition of Relievant in the fourth quarter of 2023. Organic net sales growth in both periods was primarily driven by our deep brain stimulation franchise and our radiofrequency ablation portfolio.
Cardiovascular
Cardiology
Our Cardiology business develops and manufactures devices and medical technologies for diagnosing and treating a variety of diseases and abnormalities of the heart. Net sales of Cardiology products of $2.129 billion during the third quarter and $6.048 billion for the first nine months of 2024 represented 51 percent and 50 percent of our consolidated net sales, respectively. Cardiology net sales increased $482 million, or 29.2 percent, during the third quarter and $1.090 billion, or 22.0 percent, during the first nine months of 2024, compared to the prior year periods. During the third quarter of 2024, this increase included operational net sales growth of 29.3 percent and a negative impact of 10 basis points from foreign currency fluctuations, compared to the prior year period. During the first nine months of 2024, this increase included operational net sales growth of 23.1 percent and a negative impact of 110 basis points from foreign currency fluctuations, compared to the prior year period.
兩個時期的運營淨銷售增長主要是由於我們電生理業務的增長,該業務由我們的Farapulse™脈衝場消融系統和我們的導管解決方案組合、WATCHMAN FLX™ LAAC設備和WATCHMAN FLX™ Pro LAAC設備在左心房附屬物封堵(LAAC)手術的持續市場滲透,以及我們的經皮冠狀動脈介入指導系列所推動。
Gross profit margin remained flat in the third quarter of 2024 and decreased in the first nine months of 2024, as compared to the same periods in the prior year. The primary factors that impacted gross profit margin in the third quarter of 2024 were increased sales of higher margin products, offset by strategic manufacturing capacity investments to support future growth, inventory charges and other period expenses. The primary factors that contributed to the decrease in the first nine months of 2024 were inventory charges, including related to the POLARx™ cryoablation system given the strong commercial adoption of our Farapulse™ Pulsed Field Ablation System, strategic manufacturing capacity investments and other period expenses, partially offset by increased sales of higher margin products.
Operating Expenses
The following table provides a summary of our key operating expenses:
Three Months Ended September 30,
Nine Months Ended September 30,
2024
2023
2024
2023
(in millions)
$
% of Net Sales
$
% of Net Sales
$
% of Net Sales
$
% of Net Sales
Selling, general and administrative expenses
$
1,562
37.1
%
$
1,242
35.2
%
$
4,372
35.9
%
$
3,811
36.2
%
Research and development expenses
407
9.7
%
356
10.1
%
1,156
9.5
%
1,051
10.0
%
Selling, General and Administrative expenses (SG&A Expenses)
During the third quarter of 2024, SG&A expenses increased $320 million, or 26 percent, compared to the prior year period and were 190 basis points higher as a percentage of net sales. During the first nine months of 2024, SG&A expenses increased $561 million, or 15 percent, compared to the prior year period and were 30 basis points lower as a percentage of net sales. The increase in SG&A expenses in the third quarter of 2024 was driven in part by comparatively higher acquisition-related expenses. The increase in SG&A expenses in both periods was primarily due to higher selling costs driven by higher global net sales and costs to support recent and upcoming product launches, including the Farapulse™ Pulsed Field Ablation System.
Research and Development expenses (R&D Expenses)
We remain committed to advancing medical technologies and investing in meaningful R&D projects across our businesses. During the third quarter of 2024, R&D expenses increased $51 million, or 14 percent, compared to the prior year period and were 40 basis points lower as a percentage of net sales. During the first nine months of 2024, R&D expenses increased $104 million, or 10 percent, compared to the prior year period, and were 50 basis points lower as a percentage of net sales. R&D expenses increased in both periods as a result of investments across our businesses in order to maintain a pipeline of new products that we believe will contribute to profitable sales growth.
The following provides a summary of certain of our other operating expenses, which are excluded by management for purposes of evaluating operating performance; refer to Additional Information for a further description.
Amortization Expense
During the third quarter of 2024, Amortization expense decreased $3 million, or 1 percent, compared to the prior year period. In the first nine months of 2024, Amortization expense increased $11 million, or 2 percent, compared to the prior year period.
Intangible Asset Impairment Charges
In 2024, we did not record any Intangible asset impairment charges in the third quarter and recorded $276 million in the first nine months. In 2023, we recorded Intangible asset impairment charges of less than $1 million in the third quarter and $58 million in the first nine months. The impairment charges recorded in 2024 were associated with amortizable intangible assets established in connection with our acquisitions of Cryterion Medical, Inc. (Cryterion) and Devoro Medical, Inc. (Devoro), which were integrated into our Electrophysiology and Peripheral Interventions business units, respectively. Intangible assets acquired from Cryterion were impaired due to strong commercial adoption of our Farapulse™ Pulsed Field Ablation System and the resulting lower revenue projections and cannibalization of our cryoablation business in major markets like the U.S. Intangible assets acquired from Devoro were impaired following management's decision to cancel the related program in the second quarter of 2024. The impairment charges recorded in 2023 were primarily associated with the cancellation of an IPR&D program due to the incremental time and cost to complete the program and bring the technology to market.
Refer to Note C – Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets to our unaudited consolidated financial statements contained in Item 1 of Part I of this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q and Critical Accounting Policies and Estimates contained inItem 7. Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations of our most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K for additional details and a discussion of key assumptions used in our intangible asset impairment testing and future events that could have a negative impact on the recoverability of our intangible assets.
Contingent Consideration Net Expense (Benefit)
To recognize changes in the fair value of our contingent consideration liability, we recorded net benefits of $23 million and $4 million in the third quarter and first nine months of 2024, respectively. We recorded net charges of $12 million and $43 million in the third quarter and first nine months of 2023, respectively. The net benefits recorded in the third quarter and first nine months of 2024 related to a decrease in expected payments for achievement of revenue-based earn outs. The net charges recorded in the third quarter and first nine months of 2023 related to an increase in expected payments for achievement of commercialization-based milestones and revenue-based payments as a result of over-performance. In addition, we made payments of $232 million and $73 million associated with prior acquisitions during the first nine months of 2024 and 2023, respectively, following the achievement of revenue-based earnouts. Refer to Note B – Acquisitions and Strategic Investments to our unaudited consolidated financial statements contained in Item 1 of Part I of this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for additional details related to our contingent consideration arrangements.
Restructuring and Restructuring-related Net Charges (Credits)
On February 22, 2023, our Board of Directors approved, and we committed to, a new global restructuring program (the 2023 Restructuring Plan). The 2023 Restructuring Plan will advance our Global Supply Chain Optimization strategy, which is intended to simplify our manufacturing and distribution network by transferring certain production lines among facilities and drive operational efficiencies and resiliency. Key activities under the 2023 Restructuring Plan will also include optimizing certain functional capabilities to achieve cost synergies and better support business growth. For more information, refer to 2023 Restructuring Plan contained in Item 7. Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations of our most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K.
Pursuant to the 2023 Restructuring Plan, we recorded restructuring charges in accordance with FASBASC Topic 420,Exit or Disposal Cost Obligations of$8 million and $12 million in the third quarter and first nine months of 2024, respectively. The restructuring reserve balance was $31 million as of September 30, 2024. In addition, we recorded restructuring-related charges of $44 million and $136 million in the third quarter and first nine months of 2024, respectively, primarily within Cost of products sold and SG&A Expenses. During the third quarter and first nine months of 2023, we recorded restructuring charges of $15 million and $51 million, respectively, and restructuring-related charges of $32 million and $82 million, respectively, and the restructuring reserve balance as of December 31, 2023 was $41 million.
We did not record any litigation-related net charges (credits) during the third quarter and first nine months of 2024. We recorded litigation-related net credits of $111 million during the third quarter and first nine months of 2023 related to the settlement of offensive patent litigation. We record certain legal and product liability charges, credits and costs of defense, which we consider to be unusual or infrequent and significant as Litigation-related net charges (credits) within our accompanying unaudited consolidated financial statements. All other legal and product liability charges, credits and costs are recorded within SG&A expenses.
We continue to assess certain litigation and claims to determine the amounts, if any, that management believes will be paid as a result of such claims and litigation, and therefore, additional losses may be accrued and paid in the future, which could materially adversely impact our operating results, cash flows and/or our ability to comply with the financial covenant required by our credit arrangements. Refer to Note H – Commitments and Contingencies to our unaudited consolidated financial statements contained in Item 1 of Part I of this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for discussion of our material legal proceedings.
Interest Expense and Interest Income
The following table provides a summary of our Interest expense, interest income and average borrowing rate:
Three Months Ended September 30,
Nine Months Ended September 30,
2024
2023
2024
2023
Interest expense (in millions)
$
(79)
$
(66)
$
(225)
$
(200)
Interest income (in millions)
41
5
85
13
Average borrowing rate
2.8
%
2.8
%
2.8
%
2.8
%
Interest expense increased during the third quarter and first nine months of 2024 compared to the prior year periods primarily due to increased debt from the registered public offering of €2.000 billion in aggregate principal amount of euro-denominated senior notes (the 2024 Eurobonds) during the first quarter of 2024. Our average borrowing rate remained flat during the third quarter and first nine months of 2024 compared to the prior year periods. Refer to Liquidity and Capital Resources and Note E – Contractual Obligations and Commitments to our unaudited consolidated financial statements contained in Item 1 of Part I of this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for more information regarding our debt obligations. Interest income increased during the third quarter and first nine months of 2024 compared to the prior year periods primarily due to higher average cash balances invested in each period as a result of the registered public offering of the 2024 Eurobonds during the first quarter of 2024. Interest income is recorded in Other, net within our accompanying unaudited consolidated statement of operations.
Tax Rate
The following table provides a reconciliation of our reported tax rate to the rate from continuing operations:
Three Months Ended September 30,
Nine Months Ended September 30,
2024
2023
2024
2023
Reported tax rate
30.0
%
17.3
%
24.4
%
26.5
%
Impact of certain receipts/charges(1)
(12.3)
%
(0.2)
%
(6.0)
%
(7.3)
%
Rate from continuing operations
17.7
%
17.1
%
18.3
%
19.2
%
(1)These receipts/charges are taxed at different rates than our rate from continuing operations.
Our reported tax rate is affected by recurring items such as the amount of our earnings subject to differing tax rates in foreign jurisdictions and the impact of certain receipts and charges that are taxed at rates that differ from our rate from continuing operations.
In the third quarter of 2024, the primary difference between the rate from continuing operations and our reported tax rate relates to certain acquisition-related net charges. In the first nine months of 2024, the primary difference between the rate from
continuing operations and our reported tax rate relates to certain acquisition-related net charges, benefits for intangible asset impairment charges, and discrete tax benefits primarily related to stock-based compensation.
In the third quarter of 2023, the primary difference between the rate from continuing operations and our reported tax rate relates to litigation-related charges. In the first nine months of 2023, the primary difference between the rate from continuing operations and our reported tax rate relates to certain acquisition-related net charges, litigation-related charges and discrete tax benefits related to unrecognized tax benefits and stock-based compensation.
Effective January 1, 2024, many countries where we do business, including the United Kingdom, Japan, South Korea, Canada and many EU member states, adopted a global minimum effective tax rate of 15% based on the Pillar Two framework issued by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). Other countries where we do business are also actively considering adopting the framework or are in various stages of enacting the framework into their country’s laws. While the Company continues to monitor legislative adoption of the Pillar Two rules by country, as well as for additional guidance from the OECD, there is significant uncertainty that exists regarding the interpretation of the detailed Pillar Two rules, whether such rules will be implemented consistently across taxing jurisdictions, how such rules interact with existing national tax laws and whether such rules are consistent with existing tax treaty obligations. Although the current impact of the adoption of a global minimum effective tax on our financial statements is not material, it is possible that the final adoption, implementation, and interpretation of Pillar Two across all jurisdictions where we do business could have a material adverse impact on our financial position, results of operations, and cash flows.
Our operations presently benefit from various tax provisions of the Tax Cuts and Jobs act which are set to expire in 2025. If future legislation is unable to extend or modify these provisions, this could have a material adverse impact on our overall effective tax rate, financial condition, results of operations, and cash flows.
Critical Accounting Policies and Estimates
Our financial results are affected by the selection and application of accounting policies and methods. During the third quarter and first nine months of 2024, there were no material changes to the application of critical accounting policies previously disclosed in our most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K.
Liquidity and Capital Resources
Based on our current business plan, we believe our existing balance of Cash and cash equivalents, future cash generated from operations, access to capital markets and existing credit facilities will be sufficient to fund our operations, invest in our infrastructure, pay our legal-related liabilities, pay taxes due, service and repay our existing debt and fund possible acquisitions for the next 12 months and for the foreseeable future.
As of September 30, 2024, we had $2.502 billion of unrestricted Cash and cash equivalents on hand, including approximately $67 million held by Acotec, a less than wholly owned entity of which we acquired a majority stake investment during the first quarter of 2023.The balance is comprised of $1.733 billion invested in money market funds and time deposits and $803 million in interest bearing and non-interest-bearing bank accounts. We invest excess cash on hand in short-term financial instruments that earn at market interest rates while mitigating principal risk through instrument and counterparty diversification, as well as what we believe to be prudent instrument selection. We limit our direct exposure to securities in any one industry or issuer.
In 2021, we entered into our $2.750 billion revolving credit facility (as amended, supplemented or otherwise modified from time to time, the 2021 Revolving Credit Facility) with a global syndicate of commercial banks. On May 10, 2024, we entered into a third amendment to the 2021 Revolving Credit Facility credit agreement, which provided for, among other things, an extension of the scheduled maturity date to May 10, 2029, an amendment of the Ratings based pricing grid of the Applicable Margin, each as defined in the credit agreement, and reset the applicable date for purposes of determining the amounts of restructuring charges and restructuring-related expenses that may be excluded from consolidated Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation and Amortization (EBITDA), as defined by the credit agreement, for purposes of our maximum leverage ratio covenant, from December 31, 2022 to March 31, 2024, as further discussed under Financial Covenant below. This facility provides backing for our commercial paper program, and outstanding commercial paper directly reduces borrowing capacity under the 2021 Revolving Credit Facility. There were no amounts outstanding under the 2021 Revolving Credit Facility or our commercial paper program as of September 30, 2024, resulting in an additional $2.750 billion of available liquidity.
For additional details related to our debt obligations, including our financial covenant requirement, refer to Note E – Contractual Obligations and Commitments to our unaudited consolidated financial statements contained in Item 1 of Part I of this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q.
The following provides a summary and description of our net cash inflows (outflows):
Nine Months Ended September 30,
(in millions)
2024
2023
Cash provided by (used for) operating activities
$
1,979
$
1,546
Cash provided by (used for) investing activities
(1,983)
(1,521)
Cash provided by (used for) financing activities
1,600
(10)
Operating Activities
During the first nine months of 2024, cash provided by (used for) operating activities increased $433 million compared to the prior year period primarily due to higher operating income and slower inventory buildup due to improved macroeconomic supply chain conditions, offset by higher income tax and employee related payments.
Investing Activities
During the first nine months of 2024, cash provided by (used for) investing activities includedcash payments of $1.222 billion for acquisitions of businesses, net of cash acquired, primarily related to the acquisition of Silk Road Medical, purchases of property, plant and equipment and internal use software of $513 million as well as payments for investments and acquisitions of certain technologies, net of investment proceeds of $264 million. During the first nine months of 2023, cash used for investing activities included cash payments of $1.018 billion, net of cash acquired, for the acquisition of Apollo and a majority stake investment in Acotec, as well as purchases of property, plant and equipment and internal use software of $444 million. For more information on our acquisitions, refer to Note B – Acquisitions and Strategic Investments to our unaudited consolidated financial statements contained in Item 1 of Part I of this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q.
Financing Activities
During the first nine months of 2024, cash provided by (used for) financing activities included the registered public offering of the 2024 Eurobonds. The offering resulted in cash proceeds of $2.145 billion, net of investor discounts and issuance costs. We used the net proceeds from the offering of the 2024 Eurobonds to fund the repayment at maturity of our 3.450% Senior Notes due March 2024 and to pay accrued and unpaid interest with respect to such notes. Additionally, we plan to use the remaining net proceeds from the offering to fund a portion of the purchase price of our announced agreement to acquire Axonics, Inc. (Axonics) and to pay related fees and expenses, and for general corporate purposes. If the Axonics acquisition is not consummated by the applicable outside date pursuant to the merger agreement or we choose to not pursue consummation of the acquisition, we will be required to redeem each series of the notes at a special mandatory redemption price equal to 101% of the aggregate principal amount of such series of notes, plus accrued and unpaid interest, if any, to, but excluding, the date on which the notes will be redeemed. For more information, refer to Note E – Contractual Obligations and Commitments to our unaudited consolidated financial statements contained in Item 1 of Part I of this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q. Cash provided by (used for) financing activities in the first nine months of 2023 included proceeds from issuances of common stock pursuant to employee stock compensation and purchase plans of $165 million, cash used to net share settle employee equity awards of $54 million and payments of contingent consideration previously established in purchase accounting of $39 million.
Financial Covenant
As of September 30, 2024, we were in compliance with the financial covenant required by the 2021 Revolving Credit Facility.
The 2021 Revolving Credit Facility includes the financial covenant requirement for all of our credit arrangements that we maintain the maximum permitted leverage ratio of 3.75 times for the remaining term. The credit agreement provides for higher leverage ratios, at our election, for the period following a Qualified Acquisition, as defined by the agreement, for which consideration exceeds $1.000 billion. In the event of such an acquisition, for the four succeeding quarters immediately following, including the quarter in which the acquisition occurs, the maximum permitted leverage ratio is 4.75 times. It steps down for the fifth, sixth and seventh succeeding quarters to 4.50 times, 4.25 times and 4.00 times, respectively. Thereafter, a maximum leverage ratio of 3.75 times is required through the remaining term of the 2021 Revolving Credit Facility. We have elected to designate the Axonics acquisition as a Qualified Acquisition under the credit agreement, and upon closing, will increase the maximum permitted leverage ratio at that time. The agreement also provides for an exclusion of any debt incurred to fund a Qualified Acquisition, until the earlier of the acquisition close date or date of abandonment, termination or expiration
of the acquisition agreement. As of September 30, 2024, we excluded from our leverage ratio calculation $2.218 billion of debt incurred in connection with the Axonics acquisition. We believe that we have the ability to comply with the financial covenant for the next 12 months.
The financial covenant requirement, as amended on May 10, 2024, provides for an exclusion from the calculation of consolidated EBITDA, as defined by the credit agreement, through maturity, of certain charges and expenses. The credit agreement amendment reset the starting date for purposes of calculating such permitted exclusions related to restructuring charges and restructuring-related expenses from December 31, 2022 to March 31, 2024. Permitted exclusions include up to $500 million in cash and non-cash restructuring charges and restructuring-related expenses associated with our current or future restructuring plans. As of September 30, 2024, we had $401 million of the restructuring charge exclusion remaining. In addition, any cash litigation payments (net of any cash litigation receipts), as defined by the agreement, are excluded from the calculation of consolidated EBITDA, as defined by the agreement, provided that the sum of any excluded net cash litigation payments do not exceed $1.000 billion plus all accrued legal liabilities as of December 31, 2022. As of September 30, 2024, we had $1.442 billion of the litigation exclusion remaining.
Contractual Obligations and Commitments
On January 8, 2024, we announced our entry into a definitive agreement to acquire 100 percent of Axonics, a publicly traded medical technology company primarily focused on the development and commercialization of devices to treat urinary and bowel dysfunction. The purchase price is $71.00 in cash per share, or approximately $3.670 billion. On April 3, 2024, we and Axonics each received a request for additional information (Second Request) from the United States Federal Trade Commission (FTC) in connection with the FTC's review of the transaction. The issuance of the Second Request extends the waiting period under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act of 1976, as amended (HSR Act), until 30 days after both we and Axonics have substantially complied with the Second Request, unless the waiting period is extended voluntarily by the parties or terminated earlier by the FTC. We and Axonics have responded to the Second Request and continue to work cooperatively with the FTC in its review. The transaction is expected to be completed in the fourth quarter of 2024, subject to the expiration or termination of the waiting period under the HSR Act and the satisfaction (or waiver) of other customary closing conditions. We plan to fund the acquisition through a mix of cash on hand, commercial paper and net proceeds from the offering of the 2024 Eurobonds. The Axonics business will be integrated into our Urology division.
Certain of our acquisitions involve the payment of contingent consideration. Refer to Note B – Acquisitions and Strategic Investments to our unaudited consolidated financial statements contained in Item 1 of Part I of this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for further details regarding the estimated potential amount of future contingent consideration we could be required to pay associated with our acquisitions. There have been no other material changes to our contractual obligations and commitments as of September 30, 2024.
Equity
On June 1, 2023, in accordance with the terms of our MCPS, all outstanding shares of MCPS automatically converted into shares of common stock. No action by the holders of the MCPS was required in connection with the mandatory conversion. The conversion rate for each share of MCPS was 2.3834 shares of common stock. Cash was paid in lieu of fractional shares in accordance with the terms of the MCPS. An aggregate of approximately 24 million shares of common stock, including shares of common stock issued to holders of MCPS that elected to convert prior to the mandatory conversion date, were issued upon conversion of the MCPS. Following the mandatory conversion of the MCPS, there were no outstanding shares of MCPS, resulting in the retirement of the annualized approximately $55 million cash dividend payment on the MCPS.
We received $202 million during the first nine months of 2024 and $165 million during the first nine months of 2023 in proceeds from stock issuances related to our stock option and employee stock purchase plans. Proceeds from the exercise of employee stock options and employee stock purchases vary from period to period based upon, among other factors, fluctuations in the trading price of our common stock and in the exercise and stock purchase patterns of our employees.
We did not repurchase any shares of our common stock during the first nine months of 2024 or 2023. On December 14, 2020, our Board of Directors approved a new stock repurchase program authorizing the repurchase of up to $1.000 billion of our common stock. As of September 30, 2024, we had the full amount remaining available under the authorization.
For a discussion of our material legal proceedings refer to Note H – Commitments and Contingencies to our unaudited consolidated financial statements contained in Item 1 of Part I of this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q and Note I – Commitments and Contingencies to our audited financial statements contained in Item 8 of our most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K.
Recent Accounting Pronouncements
Information regarding new accounting pronouncements implemented since December 31, 2023, and relevant accounting pronouncements to be implemented in the future are included in Note N – New Accounting Pronouncements to our unaudited consolidated financial statements contained in Item 1 of Part I of this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q.
Additional Information
Corporate Responsibility
Our sustainable environmental, social and governance (ESG) practices underpin all aspects of our global business. Our approach is aligned with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and our material topics and practices are informed by a broad range of internal and external stakeholders – locally, nationally and globally. Our employees around the world work with suppliers and other organizations that share our commitment to these practices that help address issues related to health inequity, economic disparity, climate change and environmental protection. Our global ESG vision and strategy is led by our ESG Executive Steering Committee and our vice president of ESG, who provides regular updates to our Board of Directors or committees thereof as appropriate. Our ESG team works closely with subject matter experts and key advisors from across the business to implement our ESG practices and determine how we measure and share progress. The importance of our ESG efforts is reinforced by a company wide scorecard that is part of our annual bonus program. For additional information on our sustainability efforts, as well as our Diversity, Equity and Inclusion initiatives, refer to our most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K. For additional information on our annual bonus plan, refer to our Proxy Statement for the 2024 Annual Meeting of Shareholders.
Cybersecurity
We have established controls and procedures to escalate enterprise level issues, including cybersecurity matters, to the appropriate management levels within our organization and our Board of Directors, or members or committees thereof, as appropriate. Under our framework, cybersecurity issues, including those involving vulnerabilities introduced by our use of third-party software, are analyzed by subject matter experts, including a crisis committee as needed in accordance with our incident response plans, for potential financial, operational, and reputational risks, based on, among other factors, the nature of the matter and breadth of impact. Matters determined to present potential material impacts to our financial results, operations, and/or reputation are immediately reported by management to the Board of Directors, or individual members or committees thereof, as appropriate, in accordance with our established escalation framework. In addition, we have established procedures to help ensure that members of management responsible for overseeing the effectiveness of disclosure controls are informed in a timely manner of known cybersecurity risks and incidents that may materially impact our operations and that timely public disclosure is made, as appropriate. For additional information on our risk management, strategy and governance around cybersecurity, refer to Part I, Item 1C. Cybersecurity in our most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K.
Our directors and executive officers are subject to our Stock Trading Policy, which is designed to facilitate compliance with insider trading laws and governs transactions in our common stock and related derivative securities. Our policy designates certain regular periods, dictated by release of financial results, in which trading is restricted for individuals in information-sensitive positions, including directors and executive officers. In addition, additional periods of trading restriction may be imposed as determined by the President and Chief Executive Officer, General Counsel, or Chief Financial Officer in light of material pending developments. Further, during permitted windows, certain individuals in information-sensitive positions are required to seek pre-clearance for trades from the General Counsel, who assesses whether there are any important pending developments which need to be made public before the individual may participate in the market.
Periodically, certain of our executive officers adopt written stock trading plans in accordance with Rule 10b5-1 under the Exchange Act and our own Stock Trading Policy. A Rule 10b5-1 trading plan is a written document that pre-establishes the amount, prices and dates (or formulas for determining the amounts, prices and dates) of future purchases or sales of our stock, including shares issued upon exercise of stock options or vesting of restricted stock units. These plans are entered into at a time when the person is not in possession of material non-public information about the Company. In addition to any plans described in Part II, Item 5 of this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q, we disclose details regarding individual Rule 10b5-1 trading plans on the Investor Relations section of our website.
Use of Non-GAAP Financial Measures
To supplement our unaudited consolidated financial statements presented on a GAAP basis, we disclose certain non-GAAP financial measures, including adjusted net income (loss), adjusted net income (loss) attributable to Boston Scientific common stockholders and adjusted net income (loss) per share (EPS) that exclude certain charges (credits); operational net sales, which exclude the impact of foreign currency fluctuations; and organic net sales, which exclude the impact of foreign currency fluctuations as well as the impact of acquisitions and divestitures with less than a full period of comparable net sales. These non-GAAP financial measures are not in accordance with GAAP and should not be considered in isolation from or as a replacement for the most directly comparable GAAP financial measures. Further, other companies may calculate these non-GAAP financial measures differently than we do, which may limit the usefulness of those measures for comparative purposes.
To calculate adjusted net income (loss), adjusted net income (loss) attributable to Boston Scientific common stockholders and adjusted net income (loss) per share, we exclude certain charges (credits) from GAAP net income and GAAP net income attributable to Boston Scientific common stockholders, which include amortization expense, goodwill and other intangible asset impairment charges, acquisition/divestiture-related net charges (credits), investment portfolio net losses (gains) and impairments, restructuring and restructuring-related net charges (credits), certain litigation-related net charges (credits), EU MDR implementation costs, debt extinguishment net charges, deferred tax expenses (benefits) and certain discrete tax items. Amounts are presented after-tax using our effective tax rate, unless the amount is a significant unusual or infrequently occurring item in accordance with Financial Accounting Standards Board Accounting Standards Codification Topic 740-270-30, “General Methodology and Use of Estimated Annual Effective Tax Rate.” Please refer to Part II, Item 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations in our most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission for an explanation of each of these adjustments and the reasons for excluding each item.
The GAAP financial measures most directly comparable to adjusted net income (loss), adjusted net income (loss) attributable to Boston Scientific common stockholders and adjusted net income (loss) per share are GAAP net income (loss), GAAP net income (loss) attributable to Boston Scientific common stockholders and GAAP net income (loss) per common share – diluted, respectively.
To calculate operational net sales growth rates, which exclude the impact of foreign currency fluctuations, we convert actual net sales from local currency to U.S. dollars using constant foreign currency exchange rates in the current and prior periods. To calculate organic net sales growth rates, we also remove the impact of acquisitions and divestitures with less than a full period of comparable net sales. The GAAP financial measure most directly comparable to operational net sales and organic net sales is net sales reported on a GAAP basis.
Reconciliations of each of these non-GAAP financial measures to the corresponding GAAP financial measure are included in the relevant sections of this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q.
Management uses these supplemental non-GAAP financial measures to evaluate performance period over period, to analyze the underlying trends in our business, to assess our performance relative to our competitors and to establish operational goals
and forecasts that are used in allocating resources. In addition, management uses these non-GAAP financial measures to further its understanding of the performance of our operating segments. The adjustments excluded from our non-GAAP financial measures are consistent with those excluded from our operating segments’ measures of net sales and profit or loss. These adjustments are excluded from the segment measures reported to our chief operating decision maker that are used to make operating decisions and assess performance.
We believe that presenting adjusted net income (loss), adjusted net income (loss) attributable to Boston Scientific common stockholders, adjusted net income (loss) per share, operational net sales and organic net sales growth rates, in addition to the corresponding GAAP financial measures, provides investors greater transparency to the information used by management for its operational decision-making and allows investors to see our results “through the eyes” of management. We further believe that providing this information assists our investors in understanding our operating performance and the methodology used by management to evaluate and measure such performance.
Safe Harbor for Forward-Looking Statements
Certain statements that we may make from time to time, including statements contained in this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q and information incorporated by reference herein, constitute “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Forward-looking statements may be identified by words like “anticipate,” “expect,” “project,” “believe,” “plan,” “estimate,” “intend,” “aim,” "goal," "target," "continue," "hope," "may" and similar words. These forward-looking statements are based on our beliefs, assumptions and estimates using information available to us at the time and are not intended to be guarantees of future events or performance. If our underlying assumptions turn out to be incorrect, or if certain risks or uncertainties materialize, actual results could vary materially from the expectations and projections expressed or implied by our forward-looking statements.
The forward-looking statements in this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q are based on certain risks and uncertainties, including the risk factors described in Part I, Item 1A. Risk Factors in our most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K and the specific risk factors discussed herein and in connection with forward-looking statements throughout this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q, which could cause actual results to vary materially from the expectations and projections expressed or implied by our forward-looking statements. These risks and uncertainties, in some cases, have affected and in the future could affect our ability to implement our business strategy and may cause actual results to differ materially from those contemplated by the statements expressed in this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q. As a result, readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on any of our forward-looking statements. Risks and uncertainties that may cause such differences include, among other things: economic conditions, including the impact of foreign currency fluctuations; future U.S. and global political, competitive, reimbursement and regulatory conditions; geopolitical events; manufacturing, distribution and supply chain disruptions and cost increases; disruptions caused by cybersecurity events; disruptions caused by public health emergencies or extreme weather or other climate change-related events; labor shortages and increases in labor costs; variations in outcomes of ongoing and future clinical trials and market studies; new product introductions and the market acceptance of those products; market competition for our products; expected pricing environment; expected procedural volumes; the closing and integration of acquisitions; demographic trends; intellectual property rights; litigation; financial market conditions; the execution and effect of our restructuring program; the execution and effect of our business strategy, including our cost-savings and growth initiatives; our ability to achieve environmental, social and governance goals and commitments; and future business decisions made by us and our competitors. New risks and uncertainties may arise from time to time and are difficult to predict. All of these factors are difficult or impossible to predict accurately and many of them are beyond our control. For a further list and description of these and other important risks and uncertainties that may affect our future operations, refer to Part I, Item 1A. Risk Factors in our most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, which we may update in Part II, Item 1A. Risk Factors in subsequent Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q that we will file hereafter. We disclaim any intention or obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statement to reflect any change in our expectations or in events, conditions, or circumstances on which those expectations may be based, or that may affect the likelihood that actual results will differ from those contained in the forward-looking statements, except as required by law. This cautionary statement is applicable to all forward-looking statements contained in this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q.
The following are some of the important risk factors that could cause our actual results to differ materially from our expectations in any forward-looking statements. For further discussion of these and other risk factors, refer to Part I, Item 1A. Risk Factors in our most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K.
•Risks associated with challenging or uncertain domestic and international economic conditions, including those related to interest rates, inflation, supply chain disruptions and constraints, adverse developments and volatility in the banking industry, currency devaluations or economies entering into periods of recession,
•The impact of disruptions in the supply of the materials and components used in manufacturing our products or the sterilization of our products,
•Labor shortages and the impact of inflation on the cost of raw materials and direct labor,
•The impact of any future pandemics or other public health crises on worldwide economies, financial markets, manufacturing and distribution systems, including disruption in the manufacture or supply of certain components, materials or products, and business operations,
•The impact of natural disasters, climate change or other catastrophic events on our ability to manufacture, distribute and sell our products,
•The impact of competitive offerings, value-based procurement practices, government-imposed payback provisions and changes in reimbursement practices and policies on average selling prices for our products,
•The ongoing impact on our business of physician alignment to hospitals, governmental investigations and audits of hospitals and other market and economic conditions on the overall number of procedures performed,
•The performance of, and physician and patient confidence in, our products and technologies or those of our competitors,
•The impact and outcome of ongoing and future clinical trials and market studies undertaken by us, our competitors or other third parties or perceived product performance of our or our competitors' products,
•Variations in clinical results, reliability or product performance of our and our competitors' products,
•Our ability to acquire or develop, launch and supply new or next-generation products and technologies worldwide and in line with our commercialization strategies in a timely and successful manner and with respect to our recent acquisitions,
•The effect of consolidation and competition in the markets in which we do business or plan to do business,
•Our ability to achieve our projected level or mix of product sales, as some of our products are more profitable than others,
•Our ability to attract and retain talent, including key personnel associated with acquisitions, and to maintain our corporate culture in a hybrid work environment,
•The impact of enhanced requirements to obtain and maintain regulatory approval in the U.S. and around the world, including EU MDR and the associated timing and cost of product approval,
•The impact of increased pressure on the availability and rate of third-party reimbursement for our products and procedures in the U.S. and around the world, including with respect to the timing and costs of creating and expanding markets for new products and technologies,
•The issuance of new or revised accounting standards by the Financial Accounting Standards Board or the Securities and Exchange Commission, and
•The impact of potential goodwill and intangible asset impairment charges on our results of operations.
Regulatory Compliance, Litigation and Data Protection
•The impact of health care policy changes and legislative or regulatory efforts in the U.S., the EU and around the world to modify product approval or reimbursement processes, including a trend toward demonstrating clinical outcomes, comparative effectiveness and cost efficiency, as well as the impact of other health care reform legislation,
•Risks associated with our regulatory compliance and quality systems and activities in the U.S., the EU and around the world, including meeting regulatory standards applicable to manufacturing and quality processes,
•The effect of global legal, regulatory or market responses to climate change and sustainability matters, including increased compliance burdens and costs to meet regulatory obligations,
•Our ability to minimize or avoid future field actions or FDA warning letters, or similar actions by regulatory agencies around the world, relating to our products and processes and the ongoing inherent risk of potential physician advisories related to our or our competitors' products,
•The impact of increased scrutiny of and heightened global regulatory enforcement facing the medical device industry arising from political and regulatory changes, economic pressures or otherwise, including under U.S. Anti-Kickback Statute, U.S. False Claims Act and similar laws in other jurisdictions, U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) and similar laws in other jurisdictions, and U.S. and foreign export control, trade embargo and customs laws,
•Costs and risks associated with current and future asserted litigation,
•The effect of our litigation and risk management practices, including self-insurance and compliance activities on our loss contingencies, legal provisions and cash flows,
•The impact of, diversion of management attention as a result of, and costs to cooperate with, litigate and/or resolve governmental investigations and our class action, product liability, contract and other legal proceedings,
•The possibility of failure to protect our intellectual property rights and the outcome of patent litigation, and
•Our ability to secure our information technology and operational technology systems that support our business operations and protect our data integrity and products from a cyber-attack, other breach or other malicious actors that may have a material adverse effect on our business, reputation or results of operations, including increased risks as an indirect result of the ongoing Russia/Ukraine war and Israel/Hamas war and broader conflicts in the region.
Innovation and Certain Growth Initiatives
•The timing, size and nature of our strategic growth initiatives and market opportunities, including with respect to our internal research and development platforms and externally available research and development platforms and technologies and the ultimate cost and success of those initiatives and opportunities,
•Our ability to complete planned clinical trials successfully, obtain regulatory approvals and launch new and next generation products in a timely manner consistent with cost estimates, including the successful completion of projects from in-process research and development,
•Our ability to identify and prioritize our internal research and development project portfolio and our external investment portfolio on profitable net sales growth opportunities as well as to maintain the estimated timing and costs of such projects and expected revenue levels for the resulting products and technologies,
•Our ability to develop, manufacture and market new products and technologies successfully and in a timely manner and the ability of our competitors and other third parties to develop products or technologies that render our products or technologies noncompetitive or obsolete,
•Our ability to execute appropriate decisions to discontinue, write-down or reduce the funding of any of our research and development projects, including projects from in-process research and development from our acquisitions, in our growth adjacencies or otherwise,
•Our dependence on acquisitions, alliances or investments to introduce new products or technologies and to enter new or adjacent growth markets and our ability to fund them or to fund contingent payments with respect to those acquisitions, alliances and investments, and
•The potential failure to successfully integrate, collaborate or realize the expected benefits, including cost synergies, from strategic acquisitions, alliances and investments we have consummated or may consummate in the future.
International Markets
•Our dependency on international net sales to achieve growth, and our ability to maintain or expand our worldwide market positions in the various markets in which we compete or seek to compete, including through investments in China and other Emerging Markets countries,
•The timing and collectability of customer payments, as well as our ability to continue factoring customer receivables where we have factoring arrangements, or to enter new factoring arrangements with favorable terms,
•The impact on pricing due to national and regional tenders, including value-based procurement practices and government-imposed payback provisions,
•Geopolitical and economic conditions, including civil unrest, terrorist activity, governmental changes, restrictions on the ability to transfer capital across borders, tariffs and other protectionist measures,
•The impact of the Russia/Ukraine war, Israel/Hamas war and broader conflicts in the region, and tension in the Taiwan strait, and related, downstream effects thereof, including disruptions to operations or the impact of sanctions on U.S. manufacturers doing business in these regions,
•Protection of our intellectual property,
•Our ability to comply with established and developing U.S. and foreign legal and regulatory requirements, including FCPA, EU MDR and similar laws in other jurisdictions,
•Our ability to comply with U.S. and foreign export control, trade embargo and customs laws,
•The impact of significant developments or uncertainties stemming from changes in the U.S. government following the 2024 presidential and congressional elections, including changes in U.S. trade policies, tariffs and the reaction of other countries thereto, particularly China, and
•The potential effect of foreign currency fluctuations and interest rate fluctuations on our net sales, operating expenses and resulting profit margins.
Liquidity
•Our ability to generate sufficient cash flow to fund operations, capital expenditures, global expansion initiatives, any litigation settlements and judgments, share repurchases and strategic investments and acquisitions as well as maintaining our investment grade ratings and managing our debt levels and financial covenant compliance,
•Our ability to access the public and private capital markets when desired and to issue debt or equity securities on terms reasonably acceptable to us,
•The unfavorable resolution of open tax matters, exposure to additional tax liabilities and the impact of changes in U.S. and international tax laws,
•The unfavorable resolution of open litigation matters, exposure to additional loss contingencies and legal provisions,
•The impact of examinations and assessments by domestic and international taxing authorities on our tax provisions, financial condition or results of operations,
•The possibility of counterparty default on our derivative financial instruments, and
Refer to Note H – Commitments and Contingencies to our unaudited consolidated financial statements contained in Item 1 of Part I of this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q, which is incorporated herein by reference.
ITEM 1A. RISK FACTORS
In addition to other information contained elsewhere in this report, you should carefully consider the factors discussed in Part I, Item 1A. Risk Factors in our most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K, which could materially affect our business, financial condition or future results.
ITEM 5. OTHER INFORMATION
(c)
On August 9, 2024, John B. "Brad" Sorenson, our Executive Vice President, Global Operations, entered into a trading plan intended to satisfy the affirmative defense conditions of Rule 10b5-1(c). Mr. Sorenson’s plan covers the sale of up to 67,198 shares of our common stock including up to 20,383 shares to be acquired upon determination and/or vesting of performance share units and restricted share units and 17,362 shares to be acquired upon exercise of stock options. Transactions under Mr. Sorenson’s plan are based upon pre-established dates and stock price thresholds and will only occur upon the expiration of the applicable mandatory cooling-off period. Mr. Sorenson’s plan will terminate on the earlier of May 16, 2025, or the date all shares subject to the plan have been sold.
On August 9, 2024, Arthur C. Butcher, our Executive Vice President and Group President, MedSurg and Asia Pacific, entered into a trading plan intended to satisfy the affirmative defense conditions of Rule 10b5-1(c). Mr. Butcher’s plan covers the sale of 69,253 shares of our common stock to be acquired upon exercise of stock options. Transactions under Mr. Butcher’s plan are based upon pre-established dates and stock price thresholds andwill only occur upon the expiration of the applicable mandatory cooling-off period. Mr. Butcher’s plan will terminate on the earlier of January 30, 2026, or the date all shares subject to the plan have been sold.
On August 26, 2024, Daniel J. Brennan, our Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, entered into a trading plan intended to satisfy the affirmative defense conditions of Rule 10b5-1(c). Mr. Brennan’s plan covers the sale of up to 120,672 shares of our common stock including up to 45,062 shares to be acquired upon determination and/or vesting of performance share units and restricted share units and 75,610 shares to be acquired upon exercise of stock options. Transactions under Mr. Brennan’s plan are based upon pre-established dates and stock price thresholds and will only occur upon the expiration of the applicable mandatory cooling-off period. Mr. Brennan’s plan will terminate on the earlier of June 2, 2025, or the date all shares subject to the plan have been sold.
ITEM 6. EXHIBITS (* documents filed or furnished with this report; # compensatory plans or arrangements)
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned thereunto duly authorized on November 1, 2024.
BOSTON SCIENTIFIC CORPORATION
By:
/s/ Daniel J. Brennan
Name:
Daniel J. Brennan
Title:
Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer