Waters Corporation (WAT) reported third quarter 2009 revenues of $374 million, a decrease of 3% over that of $386 million in the third quarter of 2008. On a GAAP basis, earnings per diluted share for the third quarter were 79 cents, compared to 71 cents for the third quarter of 2008. This exceeded the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 77 cents per share.  Business trends in the third quarter suggested a stabilization of demand by major end markets. Customer interest in new products is encouraging and indicates that research-related spending may benefit its future results.   Through the first nine months of 2009, sales for the Company were $1.07 billion, a decrease of 8% in comparison to sales of $1.15 billion in the first nine months of 2008. Foreign currency translation contributed negatively to sales growth during the first nine months of 2009 and reduced sales by 4%. E.P.S. for ...

Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. (TMO) today reported financial results for the third quarter of fiscal 2009. Earnings per share came in at 78 cents, exceeding both the Zacks Consensus Estimate and the year-ago earnings of 75 cents.  Net sales declined 2% year over year to $2.5 billion. The decline was due to lower Analytical Technologies revenues, partly offset by higher Laboratory Products and Services revenues. Analytical Technologies revenues declined 6% year over year to $1.0 billion. Laboratory Products and Services revenues increased 1% year over year to $1.6 billion. The company has a practice of reporting inter-segment revenues which were a negative $118.8 million for the quarter.  Gross margin increased marginally by 10 basis points (bps) year over year to 41.2%. Selling, general and administrative (SG&A) expenses as a percentage of sales increased 30 bps year over year to 21.5%. Research and development expenses as a ...

Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. (TMO) recently began the process of issuing public notice to the holders of Floating Rate Convertible Senior Debentures of Apogent Technologies Inc. that are due in 2033, reminding them of their rights to convert the debentures. Thermo Fisher accepted this debt as part of its acquisition of Fisher Scientific International Inc. in 2006 which in turn acquired Apogent Technologies in 2004.

As per the indenture/agreement, these debentures have now become convertible as Thermo Fisher’s stock traded above the minimum specified price over the applicable measurement period. The debentures can be converted by the end of this year. Thermo Fisher will use its cash or a combination of cash and its common stock to settle the conversion. 

Thermo Fisher is a scientific instrument maker and a world leader in serving science. The company was formed through the merger of Thermo Electron Corporation with Fisher Scientific International Inc. in

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A Labor Department report issued Thursday Oct. 8 shows initial claims for unemployment fell 33,000 from the prior week’s revised total to 521,000, the lowest level since the beginning of 2009. This figure was 19k less than the Thomson Reuters survey, giving some cause for hope amid a generally depressed economic outlook.

With the four-week average down to 539,750, there is strong evidence of a recovery in the labor market to many investors. The second lowest point this year being reached, on the graph of this closely watched statistic, indicates too many economists that the propensity for hiring by companies is up and that layoffs are less likely. Nevertheless the unemployment figures are still well-above the accepted 325,000 for initial claims, which signifies a robust economy.

The outstanding number of claimants also fell 1.8%, defying analysts’ expectations of a growing pool of recipients. For the week ending Sept. 19, the total

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Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. (TMO) recently completed the acquisition of Brahms AG for roughly $470 million (€330 million). Brahms AG is a leading provider of specialty in vitro diagnostic tests based on patented biomarkers for cardiovascular, sepsis and pulmonary diseases. The company also provides intensive care treatments and prenatal screening and is widely recognized for its flagship test, Procalcitonin (PCT).  The acquisition is expected to be accretive to Thermo Fisher’s earnings in 2010. The acquisition widens Thermo Fisher’s global reach and will increase its top-line. Brahms AG generated revenues of approximately $105 million (€75 million) in 2008. Thermo Fisher plans to integrate Brahms into its Analytical Technologies Segment and use the firm’s former headquarters in Germany as the European Center of Excellence for its clinical diagnostics business.  Thermo Fisher is a scientific instrument maker and a world leader in serving science. The company was formed through the ...

Dutch-born Marijn Dekkers tapped to take over German drug-maker Bayer in 2010

BERLIN (CRWENewswire) German chemical and pharmaceutical company Bayer AG announced Tuesday September 15, 2009 that it has tapped Marijn Dekkers to take over as its chief executive in October 2010.

Dekkers, who has both Dutch and U.S. citizenship, is currently the head of Waltham, Massachussets-based laboratory equipment maker Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. Bayer’s supervisory board appointed the 51-year-old to replace current CEO Werner Wenning on Oct. 1 next year, the company said.

Wenning, who extended his contract by eight months until the end of next September, will step down shortly before his 64th birthday. The company said Dekkers will join its management board at the beginning of 2010. It said that in a transitional phase he also will be the chief executive of its Bayer HealthCare unit — succeeding Arthur Higgins, who is leaving the company during the first half

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Today we are featuring top-performing "Growth" equity mutual funds, which primarily invest in equity securities of companies to achieve long-term growth, with or without income as a secondary objective.

Investors can find such funds by checking out the entire list of the Zacks #1 Rank Growth Equity Funds.2 Leading Choices

Nakoma Absolute Return (NARFX) seeks to provide positive absolute returns. The fund principally invests in mid-to-large capitalization U.S. traded companies, but may consider issuers of all sizes in all markets.

The fundamental stock selection process is designed to identify companies with the potential for positively or negatively surprising business results over 6-to 18-months. The fund believes that when a company's key drivers exceed expectations, its share price will keep rising till investor expectations and actual company performance converge.

The fund's key holdings include Microsoft Corp. (MSFT), Thermo

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Shares of Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. (TMO) slipped more than 10% so far today as the scientific instrument maker slashed its full-year earnings guidance and reported a wider-than-expected first-quarter loss.

The stock is trading on extraordinarily high volume of approximately 14.7 million, compared to average volume of about 3.9 million.

Expecting further economic headwinds this year, the company cut its full-year earnings guidance to between $2.80 and $3.10 per share. That outlook is lower than the consensus estimate of $3.15.

Thermo Fisher also lowered the full-year revenue guidance to between $9.6 billion and $9.9 billion, compared to its prior forecast of $10 billion to $10.3 billion.

For the quarter, earnings per share, excluding items, reached 62 cents, missing the reduced consensus by 8 cents.

Revenue declined 12% year-over-year to $2.3 billion, as worsening economic conditions affected the instrumentation and equipment businesses. Revenues were also adversely affected by a

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