Smith & Nephew (NYSE:SNN) today reported third-quarter revenues that beat the consensus forecast and raised its outlook on the rest of the year.
The London-based orthopedics and wound care giant posted sales growth of 6.6% to $1.25 billion for the three months ended Sept. 28, compared with Q3 2018. Analysts were looking for sales of $1.24 billion (Smith & Nephew no longer reports earnings per share for its first or third quarters). Underlying growth, adjusted to exclude currency exchange rates and one-time items, was 4.0%, the company said.
“We’re pleased to have delivered organic revenue growth of 4% in the third quarter, a further step towards growing at or above our markets,” CFO Graham Baker said in prepared remarks. “We’ve built momentum across the first nine months of the year and, at the same time, continued to invest behind our commercial teams and acquisitions to support sustained success over the medium-term. As a result, we’re confident to increase 2019 revenue guidance again.”
Smith & Nephew said it now expects to report underlying sales growth of 3.5% to 4.5%, up from 3.0% to 4.0% previously. Trading profit margin is pegged at the low end of prior guidance for roughly 22.8%, the company said.
SNN shares, which closed up 1.6% at $44.42 apiece yesterday in New York City, ticked up 0.2% to $44.49 each today in pre-market trading. In London, SN prices were off -0.9% to £17.00 per share in late-morning trading.
