Morgan Stanley Says Edwards Lifesciences Settlement With Abbott An 'Expensive Positive'

Edwards Lifesciences Corp EW and Abbott Laboratories ABTannounced an agreement this week to settle their patent dispute. Notably, Edwards will pay Abbott $100 million in royalty expenses through 2024, according to Morgan Stanley. 

The Edwards Lifesciences Analyst: David Lewis reiterated an Overweight rating on Edwards Lifesciences with an $83 price target 

The Edwards Lifesciences Thesis: The settlement removes a “key overhang” for Edwards and is an "expensive positive" for the company, Lewis said in a Monday note. 

This represents an elimination of a risk to the downside that the analyst quantified as between $20 to 30 million.
Edwards is set to release its second-quarter report July 23. 

EW Price Action: Edwards Lifesciences shares were up 1.15% at $72.04 at the time of publication Wednesday.