NEW YORK – BioMérieux today reported that its second quarter revenues rose approximately 10 percent year over year. The firm attributed the growth to a robust performance in molecular biology.
For the three months ended June 30, BioMérieux reported revenues of €643.5 million ($709.6 million), up from €582.2 million in the prior-year period. Organic growth, at constant exchange rates and scope of consolidation, was about 7 percent year over year.
Revenues for the clinical applications business, which includes microbiology, molecular biology, and immunoassays, rose 11 percent to €527.7 million from €474.4 million in Q2 2018.
Microbiology rose 4 percent to €245.4 million from €236.6 million in Q2 2018. BioMérieux said that growth in microbiology was led by good performance in the Vitek and antibiotic susceptibility product lines as well as the BACT/ALERT line.
Molecular biology sales increased 34 percent to €154.1 million from €115.1 million in Q2 2018, with 31 percent growth in the FilmArray line, led by all panels and expansion of the installed base. Sales outside of the US represented 19 percent of FilmArray sales.
Revenues in the immunoassays business segment were up nearly 5 percent to €119.5 million from €113.9 million in Q2 last year. The firm attributed the increase to the consolidation of Hybiome sales in China, and noted that sales of its Vidas line continued to decline as a result of lower volumes in Europe and price deceases in the US.
Industrial applications revenues in Q2 rose 7 percent to €115.8 million from €107.9 million in Q2 2018, which the firm attributed to strong demand for microbiology product lines aimed at customers in the pharmaceutical industry and by rapid growth in the Gene-Up molecular biology line for food testing.
By region, BioMérieux sales in the Americas rose 16 year over year to €285.7 million from €246.9 million. Sales were driven by FilmArray and clinical microbiology reagents, while price pressure on procalcitonin assays hampered sales growth.
Europe, the Middle East, and Africa saw growth of about 2 percent year over year, with Q2 2019 growth in Europe boosted by strong performance in molecular biology and industrial microbiology product lines.
In Asia Pacific, sales were up 17 percent year over year to €126.3 million from €108.1 million driven by microbiology and FilmArray growth.
BioMérieux also increased its holding in Suzhou Hybiome Biomedical Engineering in the quarter from 54 percent to 67 percent. Hybiome develops and manufactures a range of automated immunoassay analyzers that have been cleared by China Food and Drug Administration. The biomarkers measured in its Nephrocheck assay for acute kidney injury were also included in guidelines issued in the quarter by the Cardiac Society for perioperative care in heart surgery, the firm said.