UPDATE: Boston Sci CEO Keeps Financial Goals For Coming Yrs

After a week on the job, new Boston Scientific Corp. (BSX) Chief Executive Ray Elliott on Tuesday pointed to the same financial growth goals the medical-devices company had recently targeted for upcoming years, including earnings that will expand faster than sales.

Company officials also highlighted the potential impact that a study for heart-failure devices could have on growth in a key market for Boston Scientific.

Based on what he's seen thus far, Elliott said he sees no reason at this time to change Boston Scientific's goal of growing sales by 5% to 7% per year, excluding the effects of foreign currency rates, in 2010 and 2011.

Elliott said his confidence is based on the quality of Boston Scientific's sales force, although he added he sees room to expand that force.

The Natick, Mass., company also is aiming to grow its per-share earnings by at least a 15% year in coming years, Elliott said during a call with analysts following the company's second-quarter earnings release.

He said that by supporting these prior growth goals, he is "affirming the work that's been done to date."

Shares recently traded down a penny to $10.29.

Part of the company's future growth expectations involve hopes a major company-funded study will help expand the market for cardiac resynchronization defibrillators, or CRT-D devices. These tools provide power to maintain proper beating in erratic hearts and also have defibrillators on board to provide jolts to correct life-threatening rhythm problems.

While the devices haven't been used in people with milder heart-failure symptoms, the "Madit-CRT" study showed they can help slow the course of heart failure in these patients when compared with more basic - and cheaper - defibrillators. The upshot is to potentially boost usage of pricier devices, which could help Boston Scientific and rivals St. Jude Medical Inc. (STJ) and Medtronic Inc. (MDT).

Boston Scientific, which recently announced that the study was a success, expects full data will be released at a European cardiology conference on Sept. 1. On Tuesday, company officials said they see potential for the study to grow the U.S. market by up to $250 million in coming years while growing the global market by $400 million to $500 million. Elliott said Boston Scientific plans to file by the end of 2009 with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to seek approval to expand marketing of CRT-D devices based on the study. That would make mid-2010 approval a possibility.

Elliott, a veteran medical-devices executive who long led orthopedics company Zimmer Holdings Inc. (ZMH), recently took over as president and chief executive at Boston Scientific to replace long-time Chief Executive Jim Tobin, who is retiring.

The company announced quarterly results late Monday that included sales above Wall Street estimates, bolstered by the company's business for drug-coated heart stents.

-By Jon Kamp, Dow Jones Newswires; 617-654-6728; [e-mail]