Danaher shares tumble despite earnings beat
Investing.com -- Danaher Corporation (NYSE: DHR) reported second quarter results that exceeded analyst expectations, but shares fell 9% premarket.
The company posted adjusted earnings per share of $1.94, beating the analyst consensus of $1.84 by $0.10. Revenue reached $6.3 billion, surpassing the $6.1 billion estimate and representing a 5.5% increase from the prior year period.
Core revenue grew 3.0% YoY, or 4.5% excluding respiratory testing revenue. Danaher raised its full-year 2026 adjusted EPS guidance to a range of $8.45 to $8.60, up from previous guidance of $8.35 to $8.55. The midpoint of $8.53 is slightly above the analyst consensus of $8.50.
However, the company's third quarter core revenue growth guidance of 2.0% to 3.0% appeared to disappoint investors, driving the sharp decline in shares. For the full year 2026, Danaher expects core revenue growth in the 3.0% to 4.0% range.
"We delivered a better than expected second quarter, with core growth improving versus the first quarter and disciplined execution driving high-single-digits adjusted EPS growth," said Rainer Blair, President and Chief Executive Officer. "Our Life Sciences businesses delivered their strongest quarter in several years and while customer project timing impacted bioprocessing revenue, underlying order trends remained strong and bioprocessing orders grew mid-teens in the quarter."
The company's Biotechnology segment posted 2.5% core revenue growth, Life Sciences grew 5.5%, and Diagnostics increased 2.0%. Operating cash flow was $1.5 billion and free cash flow reached $1.3 billion for the quarter.
