Paced by strong sales of orthopedic implants, along with more modest gains for its medical and surgery business, Stryker Corp. cruised to a $306 million profit during the three months ended Dec. 31, 2009.
The 10.2 percent gain on the bottom line and the 6.8 percent jump in sales over year-ago levels were supported by positive currency exchange rates, which added $73 million to fourth-quarter reported revenues. A 14.3 percent bounce in international sales during the period also worked to offset single-digit decline in domestic sales, lifting Stryker to $1.8 billion in overall revenues.
A year ago, Stryker reported a $277 million profit on about $1.7 billion in fourth-quarter sales. Net profit for the full year was $1.1 billion, a 3.5 percent decline from 2008, reflecting weak sales early in the year.
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Kalamazoo, Mich.-based Stryker said it anticipates 2010 earnings of between $1.28 billion to $1.32 billion, or $3.20 to $3.30 per share. The forecast was generally in line with most analysts’ estimates. Sales are expected to rise between 5 percent to 10 percent from the $6.7 billion in revenues reported during 2009 — reaching as high as $7.4 billion in 2010, which would top Wall Street estimates.
