bioMérieux Q3 benefits from H1N1 pandemic
This article was originally published in Clinica
Executive Summary
The H1N1 pandemic over the summer helped to drive sales of bioMérieux's influenza tests and related instruments, enabling the French IVD company to record an 11.2% like-for-like growth in third-quarter sales at €305.9m ($457.3m). Excluding this positive impact, Q3 sales growth increased 7%. The quarter also saw instrument sales in North America return to growth for the first time in nearly two years – bioMérieux’s North American sales have been hit particularly hard by the recession which has led hospitals to curb their spending on expensive capital equipment. Third-quarter sales in this region increased 7.1% to €73m, while European sales grew 8.9% to €167.5m. The Marcy L'Etoile firm continued its expansion in the emerging international markets, where sales increased 29.4% in Latin America (at €24.5m) and 18.8% in Asia-Pacific (at €40.9m). bioMérieux reaffirmed its 2009 sales growth target of 5-7%, and expects operating margin for the year to be over 17%.