Fresenius plunges on missed prelims, guidance cut

Fresenius (NYSE:FMS) shares closed down some $17% yesterday after it cut its outlook for the rest of the year on lower-than-expected third-quarter results. The German dialysis giant released preliminary figures for the three months ended Sept. 30, saying it expects to report profits of €285 million on sales of €4.06 billion. Analysts were looking for sales of €4.12 billion. Fresenius cut its forecast for 2018, saying it now expects to log adjusted net income growth of 2% to 3%, down from 7% to 9% previously. Sales growth is now pegged at 2% to 3%, compared with 5% to 7% previously, “due to a weaker-than-expected growth in the healthcare services business in North America and the difficult economic environment in certain emerging countries,” the company said. “The underlying growth trends and business drivers remain intact. While we were able to improve profitability in North America, the growth acceleration in the region did not materialize as fast as anticipated. In addition, the business performance in some emerging countries was muted due to a challenging economic environment. Based on these developments, which are not expected to be fully recovered in the fourth quarter, we adjust our targets for fiscal 2018,” CEO Rice Powell said in prepared remarks. “To protect the access of our patients to dialysis care, we contributed to the opposition to the ballot initiatives in the U.S.” The news depressed FMS shares to a $41.48 close y...
Source: Mass Device - Category: Medical Devices Authors: Tags: Dialysis Featured Mergers & Acquisitions Wall Street Beat Fresenius Source Type: news