BUY OR SELL-Is new CEO reason to buy Boston Scientific?
* Shrs holding under 8-month-highs after new CEO announced
* Bulls see more financial discipline under new management
* Bears see too much debt in wake of Guidant acquisition
By Debra Sherman
CHICAGO, July 5 (Reuters) - Boston Scientific shares are holding just under their 8-month-highs after the medical device maker said that it retained industry veteran Ray Elliott to take the reins from long-time CEO Jim Tobin.
The announcement, greeted enthusiastically by Wall Street, came on the back of news a week earlier that a Boston Scientific-sponsored clinical trial met its main goal.
For the past few years, Boston Scientific, which acquired its cardiac rhythm management business when it bought Guidant Corp in 2006, has been beset by a heavy debt load, product recalls and trouble with health regulators, resulting in lost market share. Shares stumbled to levels not seen since 1998.
Recently, the company shed some of its non-core businesses, using the proceeds to pay down debt. It has also resolved its major quality issues with regulators, clearing the way for some successful cardiac rhythm management product launches.
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