Medtronic earnings preview: Strong Q2 predicted

Posted Nov 23rd 2009 3:00PM by Trey Thoelcke
Filed under: Earnings Reports, Forecasts

Medtronic Inc. (MDT), a leading maker of implantable biomedical devices, is scheduled to release its fiscal second-quarter financial results Tuesday, November 24, before the market open, and then to discuss those results in a webcast at 8:00 AM ET. You can catch the live webcast at the company's website.

During the three months that ended in October, Medtronic was once again named to the Dow Jones Sustainability Index, settled a patent lawsuit, and announced management changes. Analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters expect this Minneapolis-based company to report that earnings for the period rose 9.5% from a year ago to $0.74 per share. And revenue for the quarter is expected to be 5.0% higher to $3.8 billion.

Looking ahead to the second quarter, analysts so far expect to see similar earnings and revenue numbers. Medtronic's earnings have been in line with analysts' expectations in the past three quarters.

The long-term EPS growth forecast is 10.4%, which is better than the health care sector average. Its earnings multiple is 12x, and the First Call consensus recommendation remains to buy MDT, with a mean price target of $42.80. Analysts have remarked recently on the stability of Medtronic's core business and the favorable risk/reward.

Shares reached a 52-week high Monday after rising about 25% in the past six months.

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Tags: earnings, inthenews, MDT, Medtronic