The stock of Danaher (DHR) is down about 10% after the medical device maker reported mixed results for the fourth quarter of 2024 and offered weak forward guidance that disappointed Wall Street.
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The Washington, D.C.-based company, which also makes industrial products, reported Q4 2024 earnings per share (EPS) of $2.14, which fell just shy of consensus estimates that called for $2.15. Revenue in the quarter totaled $6.50 billion, which was slightly ahead of Wall Street forecasts of $6.40 billion.
It was the first time in several years that Danaher did not exceed its earnings expectations. The company has beaten quarterly estimates by an average of almost 10% over the previous four quarterly reports. While the results on the top and bottom lines were close to consensus forecasts, the market is reacting negatively to what appear to have been high expectations for the company.
Forward Guidance
In terms of guidance, Danaher projects a “low-single digits” decline in sales for the current first quarter of 2025. For the entire year, sales are forecast to increase by only about 3%. The outlook implies first-quarter and full-year sales of about $5.6 billion and $24.6 billion, respectively. Wall Street was looking for revenue of $5.9 billion in the first quarter and $24.6 billion for all of 2025.
Patrick Donnelly, an analyst at Citigroup (C), said following the quarterly results that Danaher’s “growth and margin guidance came in below expectations.” Nevertheless, he reiterated his Buy rating on DHR stock with a $285 price target. The stock of Danaher has declined 7% over the last 12 months.
Is DHR Stock a Buy?
Danaher stock has a consensus Strong Buy rating among 14 Wall Street analysts. That rating is based on 11 Buy and three Hold recommendations assigned in the last three months. The average DHR price target of $282.08 implies nearly 25% upside from current levels.
