Jan 15 (Reuters) - Boston Scientific said on Thursday it will buy medtech firm Penumbra in a deal valued at about $14.5 billion to expand its portfolio of cardiovascular devices, in the largest acquisition by the Massachusetts-based company in two decades.
The acquisition is the first major healthcare deal of 2026, a year analysts and industry insiders expect will bring a wave of mega-mergers as companies take advantage of a more favourable regulatory backdrop and easing interest rates to bolster
their portfolios.
Medtech firms have been expanding their cardiovascular franchise through internal R&D and acquisitions, as an aging population and rising prevalence of heart conditions lift demand in the segment.
Boston, which recently raised its annual profit forecast on strong demand for its heart devices, said the inclusion of Penumbra's products will help it improve "revenue and margins over time".
Penumbra is expected to bring in about $1.4 billion in sales in 2025.
Shares of the company jumped over 13% to $354.70 in premarket trading on the deal news.
Boston Scientific made a string of smaller deals last year, including buying the remaining stake in privately held Nalu Medical to strengthen its pain-management business and Bolt Medical to bolster its cardiac pipeline.
The acquisition of Penumbra will give Boston access to the California-headquartered firm's comprehensive portfolio that includes differentiated devices to treat conditions such as pulmonary embolism, stroke, deep vein thrombosis, acute limb ischemia, heart attack and aneurysms.
The deal values Penumbra at $374 per share, a premium of about 19.3% to its last close. Penumbra shareholders can elect to receive either $374 in cash, or 3.8721 Boston Scientific shares, with the deal paid about 73% in cash and 27% in stock.
The transaction is expected to be completed in 2026, and Penumbra's chairman and chief executive officer, Adam Elsesser, will join Boston's board upon deal close.
(Reporting by Mariam Sunny in Bengaluru; Editing by Shreya Biswas and Shinjini Ganguli)
