Edwards Lifesciences (NYSE:EW) reaped the rewards of its Sapien heart valve during the 2nd quarter, posting a nearly 17% increase in profits on a 12% sales hike, that sent its stock up nearly 6% this morning.
The Irvine, Calif.-based medical device company posted profits of $$67.8 million, or 57¢ per share, on sales of $482.0 million during the 3 months ended June 30. Excluding 1-time items, adjusted EPS were 67¢, beating Wall Street analysts’ expectations by a pair of pennies.
The strong showing was driven by a 71% spike in transcatheter aortic valve implant sales, to $145.8 million. Sapien sales in the U.S. accounted for $61.4 million of that tally.
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"As the number of U.S. Sapien procedures grows rapidly, we are extremely pleased with the continued high success rate being achieved. During the quarter, we also cleared 2 significant milestones, the favorable FDA panel evaluating the Sapien valve for high-risk surgical patients and the issuance of the final National Coverage Decision defining U.S. reimbursement," chairman and CEO Michael Mussallem said in prepared remarks. "Given our updated projections and the recent movement in foreign exchange rates, we now expect full year sales of $1.90 billion to $1.97 billion, which represents an underlying growth rate of approximately 20 percent. Excluding special items, we now expect diluted earnings per share of $2.60 to $2.68, and continue to expect full year 2012 net income growth of approximately 30 percent.
"For the third quarter 2012, we project total sales of $465 million to $485 million, and diluted earnings per share, excluding special items, to be between $0.57 and $0.61," Mussallem added.
EW shares were up 5.7% to $104.28 as of about 10:15 this morning on The Street.
