Benchmark Downgrades STAAR Surgical (STAA) to Hold, 'U.S. EVO Uptake The Sticking Point'

Benchmark analyst Bruce Jackson downgraded STAAR Surgical (NASDAQ: STAA) from Buy to Hold.

The analyst comments "STAAR Surgical laid out its plan to reignite sales growth between 2024 and 2026 yesterday at an investor event. Investors may recall that STAAR Surgical reported tepid 2Q results in August and lowered guidance in the face of slower-thanexpected uptake for EVO in the United States. The lingering question for us coming into the meeting was whether the U.S. sales effort could ramp quickly enough during the next two years to reaccelerate growth as the Chinese market matures. The plan was not dramatically different than what was sketched out during the 2Q call, with physician education and training being the primary emphasis alongside a call center strategy to help move potential patients from interest to action. A cooperative marketing program with physicians is also contemplated. But will it be enough? Maybe, but we won’t know for several quarters, so we are downgrading our rating to Hold. Japan sales growth will be depressed due to tough comps from discontinued products. China is still growing strongly, but decelerating. Finally, changing the hearts and minds of surgeons could take longer and be more expensive that the company anticipates, in our view."

For an analyst ratings summary and ratings history on STAAR Surgical click here. For more ratings news on STAAR Surgical click here.

Shares of STAAR Surgical closed at $42.87 yesterday.

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