Abbott Laboratories (ABT), a global healthcare company, has announced a 31.10 percent plunge in profit for the quarter ended Mar. 31, 2014. The company earned $375 million or $0.24 a share in the first-quarter, compared with $544 million or $0.34 a share a year ago.
Revenue during the first-quarter went down marginally 2.49 percent to $5,244 million from $5,378 million in the last year period.
International sales, which comprise more than 70 percent of total Abbott sales, increased 1.8 percent on an operational basis and decreased 2.3 percent on a reported basis in the first quarter, the company said.
'The August 2013 sales disruption in International Nutrition and the timing of supply of key products in established pharmaceuticals, primarily related to an expected plant shutdown for capacity expansion purposes, are estimated to have reduced Abbott's international sales growth by approximately 2.6 percentage points,' it said.
Gross margin contracted by 188 basis points over the last year period to 52.90 percent. Total expenses as a percentage of revenues increased to 91.40 percent from 88.56 percent in the same period last year. That resulted in contraction of 284 basis points in operating margin to 8.60 percent.
The company reported operating income of $451 million, compared with an operating income of $615 million in the previous year period.
''We are off to a good start, and we continue to expect accelerating performance beginning in the second quarter as we target another year of double-digit ongoing earnings-per-share growth,'' said Miles D. White, chairman and chief executive officer, Abbott.
In 2014, Abbott expects to increase its global capacity to meet demand with three new manufacturing facilities scheduled to come on line in China, India and the U.S. in the second quarter. In addition, this business remains on track to achieve an operating margin ratio of more than 20 percent of sales by 2015, the company said.
Abbott has confirmed its full-year 2014 ongoing earnings-per-share guidance of $2.16 to $2.26, representing double-digit growth at the mid-point of the guidance range.
Shares of Abbott rose $0.41 or 1.08 percent to close at $38.38 on Wednesday.
