Bio-Rad Q4 Revenues up 1 Percent, Miss Analysts' Estimates

Bio-Rad Laboratories said after the close of the market recently that its fourth quarter revenues rose approximately 1 percent year over year.
For the three months ended Dec. 31, 2019, the Hercules, California-based firm reported $624.4 million in revenues compared to $616.8 million in the year-ago period. On a currency-neutral basis, quarterly revenues increased approximately 2 percent year over year. On average, analysts had expected revenues of $642.0 million for the quarter.
Ilan Daskal, the firm's executive vice president and CFO, noted in a conference call with analysts that fourth quarter revenue fell short by about $20 million from the midpoint of its guidance, mainly due to cyber attach reported in December.
"We expect to recover in Q1 of 2020 about $5 million of the Q4 revenue shortfall," Daskal said, noting also that the firm does not anticipate it will be able to recover the remaining $15 million. The impact of the attack on overall expenses was broad-based, he said, including disruption to manufacturing and operations in general.
The firm's life science segment sales were up 1 percent year over year to $242.0 million in Q4, and up 2 percent on a currency-neutral basis, which the company said reflected growth of process media, droplet digital PCR and food safety products, as well as growth in North America and Europe.
Bio-Rad's clinical diagnostics segment revenues were up approximately 2 percent year over year in the quarter to $379.0 million. On a currency-neutral basis, the segment grew 3 percent due to growth in diabetes, quality controls, autoimmune, and blood typing products, as well as growth in Asia and the Americas.
Bio-Rad's net income for the quarter was $553.5 million, or $18.31 per share, compared to a net loss of $828.5 million, or $27.73 per share, in the year-ago period. On a non-GAAP basis, EPS in Q4 2019 was $2.32 and below the analysts' average of $2.44
The company's R&D spending during the recently completed quarter was up 8 percent year over year to $57.1 million from $53.1 million, while its SG&A costs were essentially flat at $214.2 million from $214.0 million.
Additionally, the company had no goodwill and long-lived assets impairment charges in Q4 2019 compared to $292.5 million a year ago. It had a $646.0 million valuation gain on equity-owned securities in Q4 2019 compared to a loss of $814.1 million in Q4 2018.