Alcon's Q1 Sales Boosted By Equipment, Implantables In Surgical Segment, FY21 Outlook In-Line With Expectations

Alcon AG ALC reported first-quarter FY21 sales of $1.9 billion, an increase of 5% Y/Y on a reported basis and 2% on a constant currency basis, slightly below the consensus of $1.92 billion.
Core diluted EPS of $0.49 beat the consensus of $0.45, and diluted EPS of $0.17 was a turnaround from a loss of $0.12 a year ago.
Surgical net sales of $1.1 billion increased 9% Y/Y, or 7% on a constant currency basis, primarily driven by demand for cataract and refractive equipment and other refractive products and continued strength in PanOptix and the launch of Vivity.
Consumables sales were similar to the previous year's levels due to the continued impact of COVID-19 on surgical procedures.
Vision Care net sales of $0.8 billion declined 1% Y/Y or 3% on a constant currency basis. Contact lens sales benefited from the recent Precision1 sphere and toric launch but were more than offset by declines in international markets.
Sales in the prior-year period benefited from higher than normal demand in the U.S. for ocular health products at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Core operating income of $344 million, with a margin of 18.0% up 140 bps, due to an increase in sales partially offset by increased investment in R&D and marketing and sales spend.
ALC declared its first dividend of CHF 0.10 per share, which is expected to be paid on May 6.
The company ended the first quarter with a cash of $1.6 billion, and its Free cash flow reached $48 million compared to an outflow of $60 million in the previous year.
Guidance: It sees FY21 core EPS of $1.85-$1.95 vs. $1.92 estimate, and sales of $7.8 -$8 billion versus an estimate of $7.87 billion.
Price Action: ALC shares are down 4.58% at $71.12 during the market trading session on the last check Wednesday.

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