Abbott Cuts 2026 EPS Guidance to $5.38–$5.58, Shares Fall 4.6%
Abbott Laboratories trimmed its 2026 adjusted EPS outlook to $5.38–$5.58, down from $5.55–$5.80 following the $21 billion Exact Sciences acquisition that accelerated debt funding and pressured profitability. Q1 revenue reached $11.2 billion with diagnostics sales of $2.18 billion and medical device sales of $5.54 billion, while nutrition revenue of $2.02 billion faced pricing headwinds.
1. EPS Guidance Reduction and Acquisition Impact
Abbott lowered its 2026 adjusted EPS outlook to $5.38–$5.58 from $5.55–$5.80 after closing the roughly $21 billion Exact Sciences acquisition, which accelerated debt funding and introduced a $0.20 dilutive impact per share.
2. Q1 Financial Results Overview
First-quarter revenue reached $11.2 billion with adjusted EPS of $1.15 matching forecasts; diagnostics sales hit $2.18 billion while medical devices generated $5.54 billion, demonstrating mixed performance across core segments.
3. Nutrition and Diabetes Care Pressures
Nutrition sales totaled $2.02 billion, weighed down by pricing adjustments and promotional efforts, while diabetes care growth of 7.5% was affected by an international tender renewal delay and challenging year-ago comparisons.
4. Forward Outlook and Growth Drivers
Management projects 6.5%–7.5% comparable sales growth for 2026, expecting second-half acceleration driven by new electrophysiology product launches and Exact Sciences integration despite a mild flu season dampening respiratory testing.