Sep. 16 at 12:32 PM
$BSX Good morning, all. A quick word of perspective for long-term holders...
Seeing heavy frustration across the feeds lately, which is completely understandable after a 58% haircut from the 52 wk high. But volatile washouts are where conviction is actually tested. In business, you get operational bottlenecks, regulatory friction, and sudden headwinds... it’s simply the price of admission. Taking profits and stepping aside tactically to manage risk--as I recently did--is one thing. Confusing near-term operational friction with permanent franchise impairment is quite another, and that's usually how investors get shaken out at the lows.
No question, IMO, that the underlying franchise value here remains substantial. At ~3.2x sales, valuation is sitting near a decade trough (down from peaks of 8.6x). While WATCHMAN and electrophysiology have hit well-documented headwinds, the rest of the portfolio--roughly 75% of total revs--is still growing at around 6%, led by Interventional Cardiology (+15% in Q2). More importantly, operating margins have expanded for three consecutive years (from 16.6% up to 21% TTM). Multiple compression while profitability actually improves isn't a broken business; it’s washed-out sentiment.
If your horizon is multi-year and you’ve done the fundamental homework, tune out the daily feed panic. In my experience, great franchises navigate the mud and come out stronger. As always, just my two cents. Wishing everyone solid discipline and great success navigating this cycle.
