Boston Sci Rumored to Be Interested in Acquiring Shockwave

Boston Scientific drove the cardiovascular space into a frenzy on Friday when it was announced it was rumored to acquire Shockwave Medical, according to a report from Bloomberg citing people with knowledge of the matter.

“Boston Scientific has been exploring a potential deal for Shockwave to boost its portfolio of cardiovascular devices, the people said, asking not to be identified because the talks are private,” according to the Bloomberg report.

Such a move could be one Boston Scientific’s largest deals since it picked up Guidant for $27 billion. The deal with Guidant made MD+DI’s List of 6 Medtech Acquisitions that Went Horribly Wrong.

“We think there could be potential antitrust risk given Boston Scientific’s portfolio of existing rotational atherectomy systems,” Marie Thibault, a BTIG analyst, wrote in research notes. “While Boston Scientific could argue the mechanism of action between its mechanical products and Shockwave’s Intravascular Lithotripsy (IVL) solutions are different, we think Boston Scientific would likely need to divest its existing atherectomy products.”

However, Thibault wrote that the deal “wasn’t surprising” and could be a response to Abbott Laboratories announcing it would acquire Cardiovascular Systems, a company that has long been considered one of the most attractive medtech M&A targets.

But the size and nature of such a potential acquisition is surprising to Thibault. She noted that Boston Scientific has historically favored smaller acquisitions.

This point was brought home in 2018 in significant fashion when Boston Scientific went through a string of acquisitions.

Thibault wrote with cash, cash equivalents, restricted cash, and restricted cash equivalents of ~$1.1 billion, debt of ~$8.9 billion, and a leverage ratio of 2.57x as of Dec. 31, 2022, we think Boston Scientific would likely need to use equity to fund this acquisition.”

Shockwave just finished an acquisition. Earlier this year, the Santa Clara, CA-based company signed an agreement to acquire Neovasc for about $100 million with deferred payments of up to approximately $47 million on the achievement of future regulatory milestones.

Richmond, Canada-based Neovasc is developing the Reducer, a technology designed to reduce angina symptoms in patients with refractory angina.

Shockwave closed on the deal earlier this month.