BD (NYSE:BDX) shares were up today on first-quarter results that came in well ahead of the consensus forecast.
The Franklin Lakes, New Jersey-based company posted profits of $655 million, or $2.28 per share, on sales of $5 billion for the three months ended Dec. 31, 2021, for a 33.2% bottom-line slide on a sales decline of 6%.
Adjusted to exclude one-time items, earnings per share were $3.64, 79¢ ahead of Wall Street, where analysts were looking for sales of $4.76 billion.
BD’s medical and interventional segments each saw revenues rise (6% and 3.7%, respectively), but the company experienced a 25% dip in life sciences sales as a result of a decline in COVID-19 testing revenues.
“Our first-quarter results reflect continued execution of our BD2025 strategy and strong base business performance from all three segments. Through our focused execution, we are driving meaningful revenue growth and improving margins, and we remain uniquely positioned to deliver value during an uncertain environment,” BD Chairman, CEO and President Tom Polen said in a news release. “We continue to advance our innovation pipeline and tuck-in M&A strategy, strengthening our leadership position in our durable core and adding transformative solutions to our portfolio.
“As we look forward, we are confident in our ability to deliver on our commitments and are well-positioned to create long-term growth and value for all our stakeholders.”
BD said it now expects to log adjusted EPS of between $12.80 and $13, compared with $12.30 to $12.50 previously, and updated its sales guidance to a range of $19.55 billion to $19.75 billion, increasing from the previous guidance of between $19.3 billion and $19.5 billion.
Shares of BDX were up more than 4% at $268.57 per share in late afternoon trading today. MassDevice’s MedTech 100 Index — which includes stocks of the world’s largest medical device companies — was down slightly.
