Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) reported better-than-expected first-quarter top and bottom lines and narrowed its earnings guidance for the full fiscal 2024.
Shares fell over 2% in premarket trading Wednesday.
The healthcare company posted earnings per share (EPS) of $0.98, beating the consensus estimate of $0.96. Revenue came in at $9.96 billion, also above the expected $9.89 billion.
Looking ahead to the second quarter of 2024, Abbott forecasts EPS to range between $1.08 and $1.12, compared to analysts' predictions of $1.12.
For the full year, Abbott adjusted its EPS guidance to a tighter range of $4.55 to $4.70, compared to the previous range of $4.50 to $4.70, against an analysts' estimate of $4.62.
Moreover, Abbott has refined its 2024 guidance for organic sales growth, excluding COVID-19 testing-related sales, to between 8.5% and 10.0%. This adjustment represents an increase at the guidance's midpoint.
“Our first-quarter results reflect a strong start to the year, and we are raising our full-year sales and EPS guidance," said Robert B. Ford, chairman and CEO of Abbott.
"This was the fifth consecutive quarter that we delivered double-digit organic sales growth in our underlying base business, which included particularly strong results in Medical Devices and Established Pharmaceuticals."