NEW YORK (GenomeWeb) – Meridian Bioscience said after the close of the market on Monday that its preliminary fiscal first quarter revenues are expected to be down about 2 percent year over year.
For fiscal Q1 2019, the company said that revenues are anticipated to be in the range of $51 million to $51.5 million compared to $52.3 million a year ago. The analysts' average estimate is $53.5 million.
Weakness in the diagnostics segment is the primary driver of the decline, the company said, while the life science segment is expected to post revenues in line with fiscal Q1 2018 revenues.
In a statement, Meridian Bioscience CEO Jack Kenny said that demand during the recently completed quarter was softer than anticipated for both segments. In diagnostics, the firm saw weakness in major molecular product lines, and in life science, bulk order shipments, which typically are vulnerable to quarterly swings, were also weak, he said.
"While we remain positive about the prospects in our business, we intend to take both short- and long-term actions to address areas of sustained weakness and mitigate the impact on the company's profitability," Kenny said. "We also remain committed to executing our strategic plan and making the necessary investments to position the company for sustainable, long-term growth."
Kenny recently said that the firm would drive growth in in part by directing profits to R&D projects instead of paying a locked-in dividend.
Meridian is scheduled to release its Q1 2019 financial results on Jan. 24.
In early morning trading on Tuesday, Meridian's shares on the Nasdaq were down about 4 percent to $15.90.