What happened
Shares of STAAR Surgical (STAA 0.17%) were skyrocketing 18.5% higher as of 3 p.m. EDT on Thursday. The big gain came after the maker of implantable contact lenses and companion delivery systems announced stellar second-quarter results on Wednesday after the market closed.
So what
STAAR reported record-high Q2 revenue of $39.7 million, up 17% year over year. Its revenue looked even better on a constant-currency basis with year-over-year growth of 19%. The company announced earnings per share (EPS) of $0.08, doubling its EPS from the prior-year period.
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The real reason behind STAAR Surgical's impressive gain today, though, stemmed from how much better the company performed versus expectations. STAAR narrowly topped analysts' consensus revenue estimate of $39.56 million but blew away Wall Street's earnings estimate of $0.05 per share.
Perhaps the best news of all was that the company's implantable contact lens (ICL) products continue to enjoy strong momentum in the marketplace. STAAR Surgical CEO Caren Mason said that ICL units grew in all geographic areas, with especially strong growth in China, Korea, and smaller Asia Pacific markets.
Now what
STAAR Surgical should have more good news on the way. Mason stated that the Q2 results "put us firmly on track to achieve or exceed our full-year targets for 30% ICL unit growth, 20% company revenue growth, achievement of year-over-year improvements in GAAP [generally accepted accounting principles] net income, positive cash flow generation, and a higher level of cash on our balance sheet."
The company also recently submitted data to European regulators from its multi-site clinical trial of its extended depth of focus (EDOF) lens for presbyopia (age-related farsightedness). STARR also filed a revised submission to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for what the company referred to as "a least burdensome pathway forward encompassing a clinical trial for our EVO family of lenses in the U.S."
