Abbott bumps up profit forecast on strong medical device sales By Reuters

(Reuters) -Abbott Laboratories slightly lifted its annual profit forecast on Wednesday, after beating Wall Street estimates for quarterly earnings on strong demand for its glucose-monitoring products and other medical devices.

Sales of continuous glucose monitors such as Abbott’s FreeStyle Libre and rivals from DexCom have been lifted by increasing diabetes care awareness, wider insurance coverage and preference for devices that do not need finger pricks.

Abbott’s medical devices unit generated $4.75 billion in sales for the third quarter, higher than analysts’ average estimate of $4.68 billion, according to data compiled by LSEG.

Sales of continuous glucose monitors, including its biggest product FreeStyle Libre and newly launched over-the-counter device Lingo, were $1.6 billion, up nearly 21% from last year.

The company now expects a full-year profit of $4.64 to $4.70 per share, with the midpoint a tad higher than that of its earlier forecast of $4.61 to $4.71 per share.

On an adjusted basis, the company’s quarterly profit of $1.21 per share beat estimates of $1.20 per share.