Penumbra Rallies 35.9% in a Year: What's Driving the Stock?

Penumbra’s PEN shares have registered impressive momentum in the past year, with shares rallying 35.9%. It has outperformed the industry’s 13.3% decline. However, the S&P 500 composite has gained 11.6% during the same period.

Carrying a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) at present, the renowned thrombectomy company benefits from the strong customer uptake of its Lightning Bolt and Flash lines in both the U.S. and international markets. Penumbra’s overseas operations show strong potential for growth and profit improvement. Solid financial health also bodes well for the stock.

Alameda, CA-based Penumbra develops innovative technologies for challenging medical conditions such as ischemic stroke; venous thromboembolism, such as pulmonary embolism; and acute limb ischemia. The company has a solid track record of organic product development and commercial expansion, serving as the basis of its global organization. Penumbra sells products to healthcare providers mainly through its direct sales organization in the United States, most of Europe, Canada and Australia, as well as through distributors in select international markets.

Factors Behind Penumbra's Growth

The rally in the share price can be linked to the company’s consistent revenue growth momentum, led by the extraordinary patient outcomes from treatment using Lightning Flash, Lightning Bolt 7 and RED 72 with SENDit technology. Penumbra is seeing an acceleration of Lightning Bolt 7 cases in the past few months as conversion from surgery, lytics and other mechanical thrombectomy products is gaining momentum. Robust adoption of Flash 2.0 in VTE (Pulmonary Embolism and Deep Vein Thrombosis) is driven by its speed, safety and efficacy. Meanwhile, Lightning Bolt 7 and the newly launched Bolt 6X and Bolt 12 are accelerating conversion from surgery, lytics and other devices in arterial cases.

Penumbra’s core U.S. thrombectomy business continues to gain traction, delivering 25% year-over-year growth in the first quarter of 2025. This was driven by continued adoption and further market penetration of the current Computer Assisted Vacuum Thrombectomy (CAVT) portfolio, Lightning Flash 2.0 and Lightning Bolt 7. The U.S. VTE franchise was a standout, gaining 42% year over year. The recent launch of the RED 72 (SILVER LABEL) catheter has been met with enthusiastic clinical uptake, reinforcing Penumbra’s leadership in stroke care.

In the first quarter, Penumbra’s international thrombectomy revenues grew 18.2% year over year, driven by solid momentum in regions outside China, particularly in EMEA. The company expects to meaningfully grow both international revenue and profitability in the next few years. Penumbra has already expanded CAVT's footprint into Europe and additional regions outside the United States, and has taken steps to optimize its geographic presence.

Additionally, investors are upbeatabout the company’s consistently stable solvency position. Penumbra exited the 2025 first quarter with cash and cash equivalents of $379 million, up from $340 million at the end of the fourth quarter of 2024. Total debt stood at $21 million, well below its cash reserves, with no short-term debt payable reported.

Concerns for PEN Stock

Like other industry players, Penumbra’s business is currently impacted by worldwide geopolitical complications, leading to widespread impact on global supply chains and labor markets. These have resulted in cost escalation and raw material supply constraints, as well as an increase in employee turnover rates in certain jurisdictions.

A Glance at PEN’s Estimates

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Penumbra’s 2025 and 2026 earnings per share (EPS) is expected to increase 69.8% and 35.3%, respectively, to $3.77 and $5.11. In the past 30 days, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for the company's 2025 EPS has increased by 3.6%.

Revenues for 2025 are projected to grow 13.4% to $1.35 billion, followed by a 14.2% increase to $1.55 billion in 2026.

Key Picks

Some better-ranked stocks in the broader medical space are Phibro Animal Health PAHC, Prestige Consumer Healthcare PBH and Inspire Medical Systems INSP.

Phibro Animal Health has an estimated long-term earnings growth rate of 26.2% compared with the industry’s 15.9% rise. Its earnings surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate in each of the trailing four quarters, with the average surprise being 30.6%. Its shares have rallied 26.3% compared with the industry’s 10% growth in the past year.

PAHC carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) at present. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

Prestige Consumer Healthcare, currently carrying a Zacks Rank #2, has an earnings yield of 5.4% compared with the industry’s flat yield. Shares of the company have rallied 30.3% compared with the industry’s 10% growth. PBH’s earnings surpassed estimates in three of the trailing four quarters and matched on one occasion, the average surprise being 2.8%.

Inspire Medical Systems, carrying a Zacks Rank #2 at present, has an estimated long-term earnings growth rate of 28.9% compared with the industry’s 25.2%. Shares of the company have fallen 9.5% against the industry’s 19.6% growth. INSP’s earnings surpassed estimates in each of the trailing four quarters, with the average surprise being 356.9%.

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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).

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