NEW YORK ─ DiaSorin said on Friday that its first quarter revenues rose 53 percent year over year on the back of strong demand for SARS-CoV-2 testing.
For the three months ended March 31, the Saluggia, Italy-based company reported €266.7 million ($323.7 million) in revenues compared to €174.6 million in Q1 2020.
DiaSorin reported CLIA-test revenues of €140.1 million, up 24 percent year over year from €112.7 million; ELISA test revenues of €13.7 million, down 34 percent year over year from €20.9 million; molecular test revenues of €90.8 million, up almost fourfold year over year from €24.5 million; and instrument sales and other revenues of €22.0 million, up 33 percent year over year from €16.5 million.
DiaSorin said that its Q1 revenue growth was driven by SARS-CoV-2 test revenues of €102.0 million, booked mainly in the US, Canada, and Europe. The firm also saw a strong recovery in its non-COVID revenues, which were in line with revenues in Q1 2020.
Its non-COVID revenues climbed around 6 percent at constant exchange rates net of one-off factors including the anticipated conclusion of a contract related to Vitamin D testing with an undisclosed major US laboratory; the lack of sales contributions from the Siemens Healthineers ELISA business following the expected termination of a supply agreement in Q3 2020; and the decline in influenza test sales as a consequence of social distancing and protection measures adopted during the pandemic.
The company said that it recently commenced a €500 million senior unsecured equity-linked bond offering due in 2028.
Among its Q1 business highlights, DiaSorin inked an agreement to acquire Austin, Texas-based Luminex for $1.8 billion, a transaction that is expected to close in Q3.
DiaSorin also signed a strategic collaboration with Lumos Diagnostics for the development of the DiaSorin Liaison IQ, a point-of-care immunoassay platform, and of an antibody and an antigen test for COVID-19 diagnosis. DiaSorin recently obtained CE marking for its Liaison IQ immunodiagnostic point-of-care reader and Liaison Quick Detect COVID TrimericS Ab test developed in collaboration with Lumos.
The firm also obtained CE marking for its Liaison SARS-CoV-2 TrimericS IgG test, a quantitative serology test for the determination of IgG antibodies, and received US Food and Drug Administration Emergency Use Authorization for its Liaison SARS-CoV-2 Ag test, an antigen test to determine the presence of SARS-CoV-2 in nasal and nasopharyngeal swabs.
DiaSorin noted that it has also obtained CE marking for its Liaison LymeDetect test developed in partnership with Qiagen for the early diagnosis of Lyme disease based on QuantiFeron technology.
The company posted a Q1 net profit of €78.2 million compared to €37.7 million in Q1 2020.
For year 2021, it anticipates year-over-year revenue growth between 15 percent and 25 percent. DiaSorin expects that its non-COVID revenues will increase by approximately 15 percent year over year. The COVID-19 pandemic, which continues to impact diagnostic industry trends, makes it difficult to predict future purchasing behavior in laboratories and hospitals, the firm noted.