Shares of Irvine heart valve maker Edwards Lifesciences Corp. were upgraded Friday by a Piper Jaffray analyst, citing several potential catalysts.
Analyst Timothy Nelson upgraded the stock to “outperform” from “market perform.”
In a report, Nelson said Edwards’ bad news is behind the company and that he expects a U.S. turnaround in 2008.
The company’s shares were up about 2% Friday with a market value of nearly $3 billion.
Edwards has faced stiffer competition in the U.S. and saw its second-quarter profit fall 3% to $34.9 million on lower than expected heart valve sales.
The company has said it’s responding to the domestic sales pressure on several fronts.
Nelson also said earnings in 2008 and 2009 should grow, thanks to new products, faster valve market growth, improving margins and “aggressive share repurchases.”
Edwards’ board recently approved a $250 million share buyback, which could help the companies profits as reported on a per share basis.
The company’s bought back some 2.2 million of its shares worth $107.2 million since Jan. 1.
