Boston Scientific filed an 8-K with the Securities and Exchange Commission Wednesday disclosing that a cyberattack detected Tuesday August 25 has disrupted access to its information systems and business applications, including the shipment services that get its heart implants, stents, electrophysiology catheters and other medical devices to hospitals and clinics around the world.
The company activated incident response protocols immediately and brought in third-party cybersecurity specialists. It cannot say when full restoration will happen or whether the disruption will have a material financial impact.
The stock fell 5 percent to $46.90, a fresh 20-day low, on a day that also included a separate voluntary product recall. Both pieces of news landed on a company that had already lost nearly half its market value this year, pressured by disappointing demand for its Watchman heart closure implant and two rounds of guidance cuts.
The company trimmed its full-year adjusted EPS forecast to $3.28-$3.32 from $3.34-$3.41 and cut its organic sales growth outlook to 5-6 percent from 6.5-8 percent at its last earnings call.
Boston Scientific has quarterly revenue of $5.44 billion, the scale of volumes an extended shipping disruption could affect is significant.
Hospitals and medical suppliers that rely on the company for cardiac rhythm management devices, endoscopy equipment and surgical tools have no timeline for when normal order processing resumes.