Hologic (Nasdaq: HOLX) reported Street-beating first-quarter results, with company officials confident enough to boost full-year revenue and earnings guidance.
Revenue from the women’s health and diagnostics company’s COVID-19 assays may be in decline. Plus, there are supply chain challenges related to semiconductor chips in its Breast Health business. Despite the hurdles, sales growth is strong for Hologic’s non-COVID business, the company reported yesterday evening.
It was the latest in a string of positive earnings reports this week from medical device companies, including Stryker, BD and Edwards Lifesciences. (Boston Scientific was mostly positive, too.)
Marlborough, Massachusetts–based Hologic earned $187.4 million, or 75¢ per share, off $1.074 billion for the quarter ended Dec. 31, 2022. The results represented a 62% bottom-line decline and a 27% decrease in revenue compared with the same quarter a year ago.
Adjusted to exclude one-time items, earnings per share were $1.07. The amount is 16¢ ahead of the consensus forecast among Wall Street analysts, who expected EPS of 91¢ on sales of $1 billion.
“In our first quarter of fiscal 2023, each of our base franchises exceeded revenue expectations while also delivering robust profitability,” CEO Steve MacMillan said in a news release.
MacMillan reported double-digit organic revenue growth, excluding COVID-19 products, in Hologic’s Diagnostics and Surgical businesses. He also said there were encouraging signs of recovery in the company’s Breast Health business.
For the full fiscal year, Hologic now expects revenue of $3.85–$4.00 billion and adjusted EPS of $3.55–3.85. That’s up from the previous guidance of $3.70–3.90 in revenue and $3.30–3.60 in adjusted EPS.
Hologic’s declining COVID testing revenue still matters
According to MacMillan, Hologic is “highlighting the confidence we have in our businesses despite an uncertain macro environment.”
Analysts, however, weren’t ready to recommend buying Hologic stock.
BTIG analysts maintained their Neutral rating on Hologic stock. “Fundamentally, HOLX is a stronger company than in years past, but COVID assay sales will continue to diminish, limiting excess cash, which is likely to slowdown share buybacks,” said BTIG’s Ryan Zimmerman and Sam Durno.
Senior research analyst Mike Matson at Needham & Co. said: “We are encouraged by the strong performance of HOLX’s non-COVID Diagnostics and GYN Surgical business and improving Breast Health growth but maintain our Hold rating given HOLX’s valuation.”
Investors reacted by sending Hologic stock up slightly to $83.14 apiece in morning trading. MassDevice‘s MedTech 100 Index, which includes stocks of the world’s largest medical device companies, was up more than 14%.
This story originally ran on Feb. 1, 2022. Updated Feb. 2 with analyst comments and next-day stock price.
