BD's Venovo Gets FDA Nod, Interventional Arm to Get a Boost

Becton, Dickinson and Company BDX, also known as BD, recently announced the FDA premarket approval for its Venovo venous stent device, the first one indicated to treat iliofemoral venous occlusive disease. The latest approval is likely to boost BD’s Peripheral Intervention business, part of its new Interventional arm.

However, shares of the Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) company lost 0.5% to close at $252.26 following the announcement.

More on Venovo

BD’s Venovo venous stent is a flexible nitinol stent specifically designed to reopen blocked iliac and femoral veins in order to maintain adequate blood flow. The device is designed for treating symptomatic post-thrombotic and non-thrombotic iliofemoral lesions.

For investors’ notice, the device is commercially available in the United States, Europe, Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Egypt, India, Israel, Mexico, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Singapore and Taiwan.

BD Interventional in Focus

With the 2017 acquisition of C.R. Bard, BD formed a new business unit — BD Interventional — which promotes positive clinical outcomes using minimally invasive and percutaneous techniques.

In the recently-reported fiscal first quarter, the segment posted worldwide revenues of $0.97 billion, skyrocketing from the year-ago figure of $183 million.

In fact, for fiscal 2019, management expects BD Interventional growth between 6% and 7%.

BD’s Peripheral Intervention, part of this new arm, also grew 0.6% year over year, in line with the company’s expectations.

Other Favorable Tidings in Regulatory Front

It is encouraging to note that in recent times, BD has seen many regulatory approvals.

Last December, BD MAX enteric viral panel was granted 510(k) clearance by the FDA. (Read More: Becton, Dickinson's MAX Enteric Viral Panel Cleared by FDA)

In November, the company’s Phoenix CPO (carbapenemase-producing organisms) detect test received the same clearance. (Read More: BD's FDA Nod for Phoenix Test Boosts Diagnostic Systems)

Price Performance

Over the past year, shares of BD have rallied 12.6% against the industry’s 4.2% decline. The current level is also higher than the S&P 500 index’s 2.5% rally.

Key Picks

Some better-ranked stocks from the broader medical space are Bio-Rad Laboratories, Inc. BIO, Surmodics, Inc. SRDX and Meridian Bioscience Inc. VIVO. While Bio-Rad and Surmodics sport a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), Meridian carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

Bio-Rad’s long-term earnings growth rate is projected at 15%.

Surmodics’ long-term earnings growth rate is expected at 10%.

Meridian’s current-year earnings growth rate is estimated at 2.7%.

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