Ryan Barnes

Can We Get Back to Stock Picking Now?

hey PJ, you'll excuse me if I object to your comments. I've been covering BSX for over five years and been published on them quite often. For a company like BSX that has been in the doldrums ever since the GDT train wreck, yes, it was a good quarter.

The $28 million drop you mention was spread out over higher R&D ($10m), IP asset impairment charges ($10m), and also higher SG&A...now the latter could have been reigned in better, but you had better be careful when you say something like "writers don't even know what earnings are being adjusted for"...

Are you suggesting that the $85 one-time charge recorded in the year-ago was part of an elaborate sandbag? That they recorded it just so 365 days later they'd have easier comparisons?

And sure, let's just get rid of GAAP and start using EBITDA instead....oh, you don't mind if the S&P 500 firms add $13 trillion in debt to their balance sheets next quarter, do you? Jeesh...

I appreciate your vigor for the nitty-gritty numbers on this particular company, but there's simply not enough space here to spout off the entire financial statement for each company mentioned. That's what the transcripts and SEC filings are for.

All that said, I have no problem admitting when I'm wrong, and my hopes for STJ to turn in a good quarter have been largely dashed. It looks like the company wasn't able to execute the same level of market share gains as in past quarters. Companies that have held to full-year guidance all year seem to be treated a little too harshly in this market. Que Sera, Sera

Best of luck in your investing efforts.

Weekly Preview: Earnings Upside Continues

70% of S&P 500 companies to report this season have surpassed earnings estimates, including 100% of the DJIA stocks that have reported thus far. This is what I mean by upside.

Best of luck in your investing efforts.