NEW YORK – Qiagen reported after the close of the market on Tuesday that its year-over-year revenues in the second quarter increased 1 percent at constant exchange rates (CER). The firm also announced it is slightly lowering full-year revenue guidance while slightly raising EPS estimates.
For the three months ended June 30, Qiagen's net sales were $496.3 million, up a fraction of a percent on a reported basis from $494.9 million a year ago and above analysts' average estimate of $494.5 million. Second quarter sales at CER were also slightly above prior company guidance for sales of at least $495 million at CER.
Excluding the NeuMoDx business, which the firm previously announced it will be closing, net sales rose 2 percent at CER, Qiagen said.
In Q2, the firm incurred pretax charges of $351 million in operating results, of which 80 percent involved noncash charges primarily related to the NeuMoDx decision, resulting in an operating loss of $228 million. It anticipates a $30 million CER adjustment to its expected NeuMoDx sales for 2024, offset by core business performance in the first half of 2024 that was approximately $15 million CER above guidance.
"We are on track to achieve our updated outlook that reflects the strong trends in our core business along with the decision on the NeuMoDx system," Qiagen CEO Thierry Bernard said in a statement.
Within the sample technologies business unit, Q2 revenues were down 1 percent as reported to $164 million from $165 million as higher consumables sales more than offset a decline in instrument sales.
Diagnostics revenues rose 5 percent to $185 million from $177 million. Within diagnostics, QuantiFeron testing revenues increased 10 percent to $115 million from $104 million, while QiaStat-Dx syndromic PCR testing revenues rose 11 percent to $24 million from $21 million.
On a call with investors Thursday morning, Bernard said the firm launched a gastrointestinal panel on the QiaStat-Dx system last month and received clearance from the US Food and Drug Administration for an expanded respiratory panel.
"Those milestones are important catalysts to attracting new customers in the US, and more new tests are on the way," he said. The firm will submit a syndromic panel to detect pathogens that cause meningitis and encephalitis to the FDA this year. It is also developing new mini-panels, Bernard said, for gastrointestinal and respiratory targets.
Qiagen is also partnering with pharmaceutical companies to expand QiaStat-Dx syndromic testing to the companion diagnostics (CDx) space, Bernard said, beginning with two undisclosed partners and an assay for hereditary diseases.
Revenues in Qiagen's PCR and nucleic acid amplification business increased 2 percent to $76 million from $74 million, with lower instrument sales year-over-year offset by high single-digit CER growth in consumables and a continued high level of instrument demand for QiAcuity digital PCR systems.
The firm is also pursuing CDx partnerships for the QiAcuity system. Consistent with goals set out at its investor day in June, Qiagen is also on track to launch a QiAcuity BCR-ABL clinical assay in 2025. Expansion of QiAcuity dPCR into hematoncology will be aided by a range products already developed in its Ipsogen qPCR business, Bernard also said.
The firm's genomics and next-generation sequencing business declined 9 percent to $58 million from $64 million, with lower sales of universal NGS kits somewhat offset by high-single-digit CER growth in the Digital Insights bioinformatics business.
Finally, revenues in the business unit designated "other" were down 9 percent to $14 million from $15 million.
In the quarter, Qiagen launched the Investigator Quantiplex Pro FLX Kit and partnered with the US Federal Bureau of Investigation to develop a QiAcuity dPCR assay to quantify nuclear, mitochondrial DNA concentrations, and male DNA and include quality markers for degradation and inhibition.
Qiagen also launched 35 new dPCR microbial DNA detection assays, a new Custom Assay Design Tool for dPCR copy number variation analysis, and the QiaSeq Multimodal DNA/RNA Library Kit.
Finally, in the quarter, the firm said its Therascreen KRAS RGQ PCR Kit was cleared by the US Food and Drug Administration as a companion diagnostic to help identify colorectal cancer patients eligible for treatment with Mirati's Krazati (adagrasib), and its Qiagen Clinical Insights Interpret platform was certified for diagnostic use under the European In Vitro Diagnostic Medical Device Regulation.
Qiagen reported a Q2 net loss of $183.5 million, or $.83 per share, compared to net income of $80.8 million, or $.35 per share, a year ago. Adjusted EPS was $.55, above analysts' average estimate of $.51.
Qiagen finished the quarter with $533.6 million in cash and cash equivalents and $356.6 million in short-term investments.
For the third quarter of 2023, Qiagen expects net sales of at least $495 million at CER compared to $476 million in Q3 2023, and adjusted EPS of at least $.55 per share at CER.
Qiagen lowered its full-year 2024 net sales outlook slightly to at least $1.99 billion at CER from a previous outlook of at least $2.00 billion at CER. It also slightly raised its EPS outlook to an adjusted EPS of at least $2.16 at CER for full-year 2024 from previous guidance of $2.14 at CER.
In midmorning Thursday trading on the New York Stock Exchange, shares of Qiagen were up a fraction of a percent at $44.60.