Biomedical testing instrument systems maker Beckman Coulter Inc. (BEC) said Thursday that its third quarter profit plunged from last year, hurt by restructuring costs related to the acquisition of Olympus Lab-Based Diagnostics. Looking ahead, the company raised its earnings outlook for fiscal 2009.
The Fullerton, California-based company posted net earnings of $1.5 million or $0.02 per share for the third quarter, much lower than $24.1 million or $0.37 per share in the prior year quarter.
Result for the quarter included restructuring and acquisition-related costs of $79.2 million or $1.14 per share.
Excluding items, adjusted net earnings rose to $59.2 million or $0.85 per share from $48.0 million or $0.75 per share in the year-ago quarter.
On average, 12 analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expected the company to report earnings of $0.84 per share for the third quarter. Analysts' estimates typically exclude special items.
Third quarter total revenue increased to $822.8 million from $758.8 million in the same quarter last year. Eleven analysts had a consensus revenue estimate of $819.14 million for the third quarter.
Recurring revenue for the quarter grew 13.7% to $676.1 million from $594.6 million in the previous year quarter. The company noted that a decline in cash instrument sales partially offset strong recurring revenue growth.
On a geographic basis, third quarter revenue in the U.S. increased 6.8%, with the ODS acquisition contributing 5.6%. In constant currency, international revenue grew 16.2%, with ODS contributing 11.5% to growth.
International growth was driven by continued strength in Asia Pacific and Europe as a result of the ODS acquisition and by substantial gains in Immunoassay.
Total Clinical Diagnostics for the quarter increased 11.8% to $711 million, while Life Sciences revenue dropped 9% to $111.8 million for the quarter.
On a geographic basis, third quarter revenue in the United States decreased 6.8%, revenues from Europe rose 10.3%, and Asia Pacific revenues rose 30.0%. On the other hand, revenue from Emerging markets dropped 4.6%, and other revenues decreased 7.4%.
In constant currency, International revenue grew 16.2%, driven by continued strength in Asia Pacific, in Europe as a result of the ODS acquisition and by substantial gains in Immunoassay.
During the quarter, Beckman Coulter completed the acquisition of Tokyo-based precision technology company Olympus Corp.'s (OCPNY.PK) lab-based diagnostics business. The company delivered 76 billion yen in cash, or about US$ 780 million.
It was in February that Beckman Coulter agreed to acquire diagnostic systems portion of Olympus' Life Sciences business for 77.45 billion yen or about US$800 million. The deal was expected to increase Beckman's annual revenue by about $500 million in 2010 and generate operating income of nearly $40 million to $50 million.
For the nine-month period of 2009, Beckman Coulter reported net earnings of $82.9 million or $1.26 per share, compared to $110.9 million or $1.72 per share in the previous year period.
On an adjusted basis, net earnings grew to $168.6 million or $2.55 per share from $145.5 million or $2.26 per share in the prior year quarter.
Revenue for the period remained flat at $2.27 billion, while it rose by 3.8% on a constant currency basis.
For the full year 2009, Beckman Coulter expects total revenue to be roughly flat, or up 0% to 2% in constant currency. Recurring revenue is still expected to grow in the range of 6% to 7% for the year on a constant currency basis, which is supported by the 6.8% actual growth rate.
Stand-alone Beckman Coulter earnings are estimated to be in the range of $3.85 to $3.95 per share, up from its prior estimate of $3.76 to $3.91 per share.
Analysts currently project the company to report earnings of $3.91 per share on revenue of $3.22 billion for the year.
Further, the company said it will provide preliminary outlook for 2010, including the effect of the ODS acquisition, at its Annual Business Review set for December 17.
Beckman Coulter closed Thursday's regular trading session at $67.06, up 87 cents or 1.31%.
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