Becton Dickinson lifts 2024 profit forecast on surgical devices strength
Feb 1 (Reuters) - Becton Dickinson beat first-quarter profit estimates and raised its full-year earnings forecast on Thursday as it benefits from strong demand for its surgical equipment.
While some companies such as Johnson & Johnson and Boston Scientific have benefited from people, especially older patients, undergoing surgeries they had delayed due to the pandemic, the likes of Danaher and Thermo Fisher Scientific have forecast a weak 2024 due to low demand in their key market, China.
Becton Dickinson's interventional unit, through which it offers surgical and critical care devices, recorded sales of $1.19 billion in the first quarter, beating estimates of $1.18 billion, according to LSEG data.
The company's largest unit, which makes devices to administer drugs, reported a 3.5% rise in sales to $2.23 billion, in line with analysts' average estimate.
Becton Dickinson, which also sells needles, syringes and other such medical products, earned an adjusted profit of $2.68 per share, beating analysts' estimates of $2.40 per share.
On an adjusted basis, the New Jersey-based company now expects to earn between $12.82 to $13.06 per share in fiscal 2024, higher than its previous forecast of $12.70 to $13.00 per share. (Reporting by Christy Santhosh in Bengaluru; Editing by Shounak Dasgupta and Savio D'Souza)
