Thermo Fisher Beats Q1 Estimates, Lowers Full-Year Forecast As Tariffs And Costs Take A Toll

Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. TMO on Wednesday reported first-quarter 2025 adjusted earnings per share of $5.15, beating the street view of $5.10.

Quarterly sales of $10.36 billion, almost flat year over year, outpaced the analyst consensus estimate of $10.23 billion. Organic revenue growth was 1%.

"We delivered very strong performance in the first quarter in a more uncertain macroeconomic environment, and I'm incredibly proud of our team's execution," said Marc Casper, chairman, president, and CEO of Thermo Fisher Scientific. "Our team leveraged the PPI Business System to drive operational excellence and enable our customers' success."

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During its earnings conference call, Thermo Fisher Scientific lowered its fiscal year 2025 adjusted EPS guidance from $23.10-$23.50 to $21.76-$22.84 compared to the consensus of $23.25.

The company revised its 2025 sales guidance from $43.5 billion-$44 billion to $43.3 billion-$44.2 billion compared to consensus of $43.84 billion.

Stephen Williamson, senior vice president & CFO said, “It’s worth noting that the tariff-related changes to the guide reduced our adjusted operating income margin by 120 basis points. This is driven by FX and also the tariff costs partially offset by incremental pricing actions. We’re taking the right actions and protecting the profit dollars, but it has an impact on our reported margins.”

Williamson said the company expects U.S.-China tariffs to hurt sales in China for products made in the U.S. The company estimates this will reduce revenue by $400 million in 2025. These tariffs will also raise the cost of parts and subassemblies sourced from China. After accounting for lower sales and higher costs—despite efforts to reduce the impact—the company expects adjusted operating income to take a $375 million hit compared to previous guidance.

The company expects slower purchasing in 2025, particularly for instruments and equipment, as it assesses possible changes in government funding and explores new ways to secure funding for ongoing work. It's also planning for a decrease in clinical trial activity, including vaccine-related studies.

Williamson said that looking beyond 2025, the financial impact of broader economic changes should ease fairly quickly thanks to the company’s strong steps. The company will soon see the full benefits of its supply chain improvements and believes academic customers will adjust how they fund their work and take advantage of new opportunities.

Price Action: TMO stock was up 0.7% at $431.64 on Wednesday.

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