Thermo Fisher profit off after merger
Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. said its fourth-quarter profit fell sharply because of costs from a recently completed deal that more than doubled the newly renamed company's revenue and workforce.
But profit at the maker of scientific instruments and laboratory supplies beat Wall Street expectations. And the Waltham company's fourth-quarter revenue grew 11 percent from a year earlier, had Thermo Electron and Fisher Scientific International been combined in both comparison periods.
The company's operating income rose 21 percent on that basis, and its top executive reaffirmed expectations the company will achieve its goal of $75 million in cost savings this year from the $10.6 billion deal completed Nov. 9.
Thermo said net income for the three months ended Dec. 31 was $25.3 million, down 55 percent from the previous year's fourth quarter -- a comparison in accordance with accounting rules that measure the profit of the former Thermo Electron as a standalone company in the final quarter of 2005 versus the latest quarter. In the latest period, Fisher Scientific's results were added in for the quarter's final seven weeks after the deal closed.
Profit fell to 8 cents per share from 34 cents a year earlier -- a comparison clouded because the company had nearly twice as many shares outstanding in the latest quarter.
The latest quarter's profit also was hurt by a $125 million charge from costs from the merger. The smaller 11,000-employee Thermo acquired Hampton, N.H.-based Fisher Scientific, which had 19,500 workers.
Excluding one-time charges and gains, Thermo Fisher Scientific's fourth-quarter profit totaled 57 cents per share, up from 47 cents a year ago.
(AP)
