Dive Brief:
- Boston Scientific plans to acquire Penumbra for about $14.5 billion, the companies announced Thursday.
- Penumbra makes heart devices to remove clots from blood vessels, treating conditions including pulmonary embolism, stroke and deep vein thrombosis. It also makes an embolization system, designed to stop blood flow to control bleeding.
- Boston Scientific CEO Mike Mahoney sees an “opportunity to enter new, fast-growing segments within the vascular space,” he said in a statement.
Dive Insight:
The planned purchase, one of the first large medtech acquisitions of 2026, is expected to complement Boston Scientific’s portfolio. Buying Penumbra would let Boston Scientific expand into new markets in thrombectomy and embolization, bringing the cardiovascular device company a growth asset, BTIG analyst Ryan Zimmerman wrote in a research note.
Boston Scientific will pay $374 per share in cash and stock. Zimmerman said the price is fair, valuing Penumbra at about 19% above its share price Wednesday.
Penumbra is expected to report 2025 revenue of about $1.4 billion, a more than 17% increase year over year.
The deal was not surprising, RBC Capital Markets analyst Shagun Singh wrote in a research note, adding that Penumbra “has been considered a take-out candidate for some time now.” Stryker’s $4.9 billion acquisition last year of Inari Medical, another company making thrombectomy devices, made Penumbra a more attractive acquisition candidate, Zimmerman said.
The deal is expected to close in 2026, subject to shareholder approval and other customary closing conditions.
