Stent Blockage Kills Boston Scientific (BSX)

A large drop in the sale of drug coated stents knocked Boston Scientific's (BSX) quarter way down. The company's second-quarter profit, excluding charges, was $271 million, or 18 cents per share, compared with $412 million, or 31 cents per share, a year ago. Quarterly sales fell slightly to $2.1 billion.

Boston Scientific probably cannot solve the issue with its stent product. The medical community believes that the products can cause clotting and heart problems. That is unlikely to go away. Sales of its drug-eluting heart stents were $437 million in the quarter from $647 million last year.

That could get worse, and so could the stock price.

Douglas A. McIntyre