Boston Scientific cuts sales outlook in 'challenging year' of cyberattack

Boston Scientific’s shares dropped on Wednesday after it lowered its sales outlook. Picture: Larry Cummins

Boston Scientific’s shares fell on Wednesday after it lowered its sales outlook and said it expects fourth-quarter sales to decline.

The medical device maker suffered a cyberattack in August that interrupted its global operations and led it to disclose shortly after that it didn’t expect to meet expectations for net sales or adjusted earnings for the full year. 

On Wednesday, the company published its third quarter results, reporting net sales of $5.138bn (€4.61bn), an increase of 1.5% on a year previous.

Boston Scientific fell 9% at 9.32am on Wednesday in New York. Through Tuesday’s close, the shares had lost 53% this year.

“2026 has been a challenging year for us,” Jon Monson, Boston Scientific chief financial officer, said on an earnings call. After several years of growth in some aspects of its cardiovascular businesses “we’ve seen that cycle turn”, said Mr Monson. 

He added that the company has implemented a new operating model that should improve forecasting accuracy in the future.

The company said on Wednesday it estimates full-year adjusted earnings per share of $3.16 to $3.18, falling short of analysts’ estimate of $3.23. 

Boston Scientific also said it estimates year-over-year net sales will decline in the fourth quarter by as much as 3%. It now estimates fourth-quarter adjusted earnings per share of $0.77 to $0.79.

The company employs more than 7,000 staff across its three Irish plants in Cork, Clonmel, and Galway. An estimated 1,200 people work at Boston Scientific’s Model Farm Road plant in Cork, which was established in 1997.

In August, the US multinational confirmed it had suffered the cyberattack that has disrupted its global operations. The attack affected parts of the company’s business including information systems used to process and ship customer orders. 

"This has been a challenging year for Boston Scientific and I'm proud of how our global teams have responded, particularly to the cybersecurity incident, working with urgency and resilience to restore operations and continue supporting customers and patients," said chair and chief executive Mike Mahoney.

"As we move forward, I remain confident in our long-term strategy, fueled by our dedicated talent, differentiated portfolio and strong pipeline of meaningful innovation."

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