Abbott Labs beats by $0.01, beats on revs; guides Q1 EPS above consensus; guides FY18 EPS in-line; increases quarterly dividend to $0.28/share from $0.265/share (59.23)
- Reports Q4 (Dec) earnings of $0.74 per share, excluding non-recurring items, $0.01 better than the Capital IQ Consensus of $0.73; revenues rose 42.3% year/year to $7.59 bln vs the $7.38 bln Capital IQ Consensus.
- Co issues upside guidance for Q1, sees EPS of $0.57-0.59, excluding non-recurring items, vs. $0.56 Capital IQ Consensus Estimate.
- Co issues in-line guidance for FY18, sees EPS of $2.80-2.90, excluding non-recurring items, vs. $2.83 Capital IQ Consensus Estimate.
- Abbott has stated its commitment to reduce its debt levels following the recent acquisitions of St. Jude Medical and Alere, Inc. For the full year 2017, Abbott generated operating cash flow in excess of $5.0 billion and free cash flow4 in excess of $4.0 billion. In January 2018, Abbott repaid $4.0 billion of debt and anticipates additional debt repayments throughout 2018.
- On Dec. 15, 2017, the board of directors of Abbott increased the company's quarterly dividend to $0.280 per share from $0.265 per share. Abbott's cash dividend is payable Feb. 15, 2018, to shareholders of record at the close of business on Jan. 12, 2018. This marks the 376th consecutive quarterly dividend to be paid by Abbott