BOSTON SCIENTIFIC CORP vs Smith & Nephew plc, two Medical Devices stocks. A side-by-side on valuation, growth, margins, returns, and what each price is betting.
Boston Scientific at 18.5 times earnings is priced as an ordinary good business; Smith & Nephew at 41.6 times is priced as a turnaround completing, and the fundamentals argue the prices should run the other way. Boston Scientific earns the better margins, 21.2% operating against 12.9%, the better net line, 17.3% against 10.1%, and similar free-cash yields near 5%. Both are debt-free. What the premium on Smith & Nephew buys is the distance between its current economics and orthopedic peers', a gap management has promised to close for years. The market is paying twenty-three extra multiple turns for that closure while the demonstrated compounder sells at a discount; patience has rarely been priced so asymmetrically.
Comparison updated 2026-07-10.
| Metric | BSX | SNN |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $44.13 | $30.02 |
| Market cap | $66.0B | $26.0B |
| Sector | Medical Devices | Medical Devices |
| Stage | Growth | Mature |
| Implied growth (priced in) | +6.7% | — |
| P/E | 18.5 | 41.6 |
| P/B | 2.53 | 4.92 |
| P/S | 3.20 | 4.22 |
| EV/EBITDA | 12.4 | 32.1 |
| Revenue growth | +17.6% | +4.3% |
| Gross margin | 69.5% | 68.0% |
| Operating margin | 21.2% | 12.9% |
| Net margin | 17.3% | 10.1% |
| Return on equity | 13.6% | 11.8% |
| Return on assets | 8.0% | 6.0% |
| Return on invested capital | 11.5% | 12.0% |
| FCF yield | 5.3% | 4.9% |
| Debt / equity | 0.00 | 0.00 |
| Current ratio | 1.90 | 2.57 |
| Altman Z (solvency) | 6.88 | 4.86 |
| Piotroski F (quality) | 5 / 9 | 7 / 9 |
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The stronger value is highlighted per metric where one is strictly better on that single number; it is not an overall verdict on either company. For informational and research purposes only. Not investment advice. Not a recommendation to buy, sell, or hold any security. boothcheck is not a registered investment adviser. Past performance does not guarantee future results.