Abbott Earnings Beat After Exact Sciences Deal

Abbott Laboratories reported a modest revenue and adjusted-profit beat in Q1 2026 on April 16, 2026, but narrowed its full-year adjusted EPS guidance and highlighted merger and integration costs following the Exact Sciences acquisition completed on March 23, 2026.

Quarter Results and Outlook

The company’s 8-K filing showed Q1 net sales of $11.2 billion, up 7.8% reported and 3.7% on a comparable basis. Adjusted net earnings rose 6.0% year over year to $2.0 billion, with adjusted diluted EPS of $1.15. GAAP net earnings declined 18.7% to $1.1 billion, and GAAP diluted EPS fell to $0.61.

Abbott updated its full-year 2026 guidance, forecasting comparable sales growth of 6.5% to 7.5% and adjusted diluted EPS between $5.38 and $5.58. The company said this range includes a $0.20 EPS dilution from the Exact Sciences acquisition. It also provided second-quarter adjusted diluted EPS guidance of $1.25 to $1.31, narrowing prior full-year EPS guidance of $5.55 to $5.80.

The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.63 per share, payable May 15, 2026, marking its 409th consecutive dividend payment.

Acquisition and Segment Performance

Abbott completed its acquisition of Exact Sciences on March 23, 2026, in a transaction valued at approximately $21 billion to $23 billion. The deal added Cologuard and Cancerguard multi-cancer screening products and created a new Cancer Diagnostics segment.

Diagnostics revenue reached $2.2 billion, up 6.1% reported, with the Cancer Diagnostics business showing double-digit growth since the acquisition. Medical Devices sales rose 13.2% to $5.5 billion, and Established Pharmaceuticals grew 13.2% to $1.4 billion.

Nutrition sales declined 6.0% reported and 7.7% on a comparable basis to $2.0 billion. The company attributed the decline to pricing actions and lower volumes but said those pricing moves, combined with new product launches, are expected to improve volume growth over the year.

Abbott excluded specified items totaling $945 million after tax, or $0.54 per share, from adjusted results. These included $422 million of intangible amortization charges and $514 million of restructuring, acquisition, integration, and European medical device regulation compliance costs.

"These pricing actions, together with the launch of several new products, are expected to contribute to improved volume growth over the course of the year," the company said in a statement on nutrition.