The company lifted its 2021 outlook amid better-than-expected quarterly figures
The Dutch health technology company Philips posted quarterly
earnings that topped expectations, as the COVID-19 pandemic boosted demand for
hospital equipment and personal health appliances.
Philips
announced that its core earnings jumped 74% in Q1 2021 to €362 million, while
its comparable sales (revenue generated by a retail location in the most recent
accounting compared to the revenue generated during the same period in the past)
went up 9%, beating expectations. According to CEO Frans van Houten: “Our
performance gained momentum with a strong sales growth and profitability
improvement, with all business segments and markets contributing.” The markets
were looking for €326 million in earnings and a 6% rise in comparable sales.
However, its net profit remained unchanged at €40 million.
For the futures, Philips expects its comparable sales to
grow by “low-to-mid-single-digit” in 2021.
The market’s reaction wasn’t a positive one, given that at the
moment of writing, during the pre-market session, Philips stock price is
trading more than 3% lower.
Sources: reuters.com, finance.yahoo.com, investopedia.com
