PerkinElmer shares climb after 3Q earnings report
Shares of PerkinElmer soared to a new annual high, a day after the health and industrial sciences company reported third-quarter results that topped Wall Street expectations.
THE SPARK: The Waltham, Mass., company said Thursday its earnings fell 19 percent in the quarter to $29.6 million, or 26 cents per share, in the three months that ended Sept. 30. That compares to earnings of $36.6 million, or 32 cents per share, in last year's quarter.
The company's adjusted earnings of 45 cents per share and its revenue of $509.6 million both topped analyst expectations, as did its new forecast for the year.
Analysts expected, on average, earnings of 44 cents per share on $506.3 million in revenue for the third quarter, according to FactSet.
PerkinElmer Inc. said Thursday it now expects adjusted 2012 earnings of $2.05 to $2.07 per share.
That tops analyst expectations of $2.04 per share.
THE BIG PICTURE: PerkinElmer runs human and environmental health businesses. It makes scientific instruments and offers testing and diagnostic services. It focuses on therapeutic and disease research, prenatal screening, environmental testing and industrial monitoring.
THE ANALYSIS: The company reported "materially stronger" core revenue growth in the third quarter, Jefferies analyst Jon Wood said in a research note. He added that evidence is building for the sustainability of healthy core revenue and profitability improvements.
That, he said, is crucial for PerkinElmer's ability to show progress toward generating a respectable return on the capital it has spent the past couple years on acquisitions.
SHARE ACTION: Up 8.4 percent, or $2.39, to $30.89 in afternoon trading. The stock had reached a 52-week high of $31.71 earlier in the day. The stock price has climbed more than 50 percent so far this year.
