Conmed 1Q profit falls on higher costs, buyout charge

Surgical equipment maker Conmed Corp. on Thursday said its first-quarter profit fell about 8 percent on higher costs and for charges for the buyout of its Italian distributor.

The company earned $11 million, or 38 cents per share, compared with profit of $11.9 million, or 42 cents per share, a year prior. Excluding charges, the company earned 40 cents per share.

Revenue rose 12 percent to $190.8 million from $171 million.

Sales of arthroscopy products rose 21.9 percent to $75.8 million, while sales of powered surgical instruments rose 6.9 percent to $40.2 million. Endoscopic technology sales rose 11.3 percent to $26.7 million, while endosurgery sales rose 11.8 percent to $15.2 million. Sales of endoscopic technology products fell 5 percent to $12.5 million.

In January, the company acquired its Italian distributor for $21.6 million and recorded a $1 million write-down in the value of the distributor's inventory that was later sold. Conmed said it doesn't expect any more charges from the acquisition.