Old giants weather difficult economy - and Boston thrives
This article was originally published in Clinica
Executive Summary
2002 was not an easy year for Baxter International, what with the problems in its renal products department and doubts over its long-term growth potential, but it managed to struggle through with double-digit sales growth. And excluding special charges related to acquisitions and divestments, it achieved a respectable 15% increase in net profit to $1.24bn. Of the company's three operating divisions - medication delivery, renal and bioscience - the first was the strongest. Sales rose by 14% to $3.32bn, driven by anaesthesia devices and drug delivery products. Renal sales rose by just 2% to $1.7bn, and the company has decided to divest the services part of the business and focus on products.