Abbott Laboratories Beats on Both Top and Bottom Lines (ABT)

Abbott Laboratories Beats on Both Top and Bottom Lines

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Abbott Laboratories (NYSE: ABT ) reported earnings on April 18. Here are the numbers you need to know.

The 10-second takeaway
For the quarter ended March 31 (Q1), Abbott Laboratories beat expectations for both revenue and earnings per share.

Compared to the prior-year quarter, revenue improved and GAAP earnings per share grew significantly.

Margins grew across the board.

Revenue details
Abbott Laboratories reported revenue of $9.46 billion. The 18 analysts polled by S&P Capital IQ expected to see revenue of $9.36 billion on the same basis. GAAP reported sales were 4.6% higher than the prior-year quarter's $9.04 billion.

Source: S&P Capital IQ. Quarterly periods. Dollar amounts in millions. Non-GAAP figures may vary to maintain comparability with estimates.

EPS details
Non-GAAP EPS came in at $1.03. The 21 earnings estimates compiled by S&P Capital IQ averaged $1 per share on the same basis. GAAP EPS of $0.78 for Q1 were 39% higher than the prior-year quarter's $0.56 per share.

Source: S&P Capital IQ. Quarterly periods. Non-GAAP figures may vary to maintain comparability with estimates.

Margin details
For the quarter, gross margin was 60.6%, 270 basis points better than the prior-year quarter. Operating margin was 18.3%, 150 basis points better than the prior-year quarter. Net margin was 13.1%, 350 basis points better than the prior-year quarter.

Looking ahead
Next quarter's average estimate for revenue is $9.91 billion. On the bottom line, the average EPS estimate is $1.21.

Next year's average estimate for revenue is $39.93 billion. The average EPS estimate is $5.01.

Investor sentiment
The stock has a five-star rating (out of five) at Motley Fool CAPS, with 2,559 members rating the stock outperform and 94 members rating it underperform. Among 634 CAPS All-Star picks (recommendations by the highest-ranked CAPS members), 618 give Abbott Laboratories a green thumbs-up, and 16 give it a red thumbs-down.

Of Wall Street recommendations tracked by S&P Capital IQ, the average opinion on Abbott Laboratories is outperform, with an average price target of $61.61.

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Seth Jayson had no position in any company mentioned here at the time of publication. You can view his stock holdings here. He is co-advisor of Motley Fool Hidden Gems, which provides new small-cap ideas every month, backed by a real-money portfolio. The Motley Fool owns shares of Abbott Laboratories. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

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