“All four of our businesses exceeded expectations and contributed to strong growth overall. We forecast continued strong performance and are raising our full-year outlook despite recent currency shifts,” said Miles White, CEO.
Yet again, Abbott’s diagnostic business posted strong growth of 47%, driven by the synergies of the Alere acquisition. Medical devices business, the company’s highest sales contributor, saw its sales grow 11%, thanks to the strong demand for the company’s FreeStyle Libre device.
Related: Abbott Q1 earnings
Backing the positive results, Abbott raised its full-year 2018 earnings guidance, with EPS from continuing operations now expected in the range of $1.34 to $1.40, up from the earlier expected range of $1.23 to $1.33 range. On an adjusted basis, EPS from continuing operations for full-year is now expected in the range of $2.85 to $2.91, higher than the earlier expected $2.80 to $2.90 range.
For third quarter of 2018, Abbott sees EPS from continuing operations coming in the range of $0.32 to $0.34, while adjusted EPS from continuing operations is anticipated to be $0.73 to $0.75.
On a regional basis, Abbott saw strong performance across its geographies, led by growth in many regions across Asia, including Greater China, and Latin America.
Related: Strong pharma business aids in Johnson & Johnson’s Q2 beat
The company’s peers Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) reported a sales growth of more than 10% for its last reported quarter yesterday. Additionally, its other competitors to the likes of Boston Scientific (BSX) and Edwards Lifesciences (EW) are expected to post growth of 15% and 9% respectively for their upcoming quarter releases.
For the trailing 12 months, the stock has returned over 28% to the company’s long-term investors, while the returns also remained positive for the short-term, giving a reasonable 6% return for its investors since the beginning of 2018.
Related Infographics: Q1 earnings
