WESTBROOK, Maine, Oct. 21, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- IDEXX Laboratories, Inc. (NASDAQ: IDXX), today reported that revenues for the third quarter of 2011 increased 12% to $301.0 million, from $269.6 million for the third quarter of 2010. Organic revenue growth, as defined below, was 8%. Earnings per diluted share ("EPS") for the quarter ended September 30, 2011 increased 12% to $0.66, compared to $0.59 for the same period in the prior year.

Organic revenue growth excludes the impact of changes in foreign currency exchange rates, which contributed 4% to revenue growth, and revenue from acquisitions subsequent to June 30, 2010, which contributed less than 1% to revenue growth in the third quarter of 2011.

"Our strategy of bringing innovations to our global markets continues to deliver," stated Jonathan Ayers, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. "In an economic environment that remains challenging, our organic growth of 8% in the third quarter demonstrates our continued success in bringing an integrated portfolio of products and services to our veterinary and other customers, as well as strong commercial execution in markets around the world."

"Our initiatives aimed at helping veterinarians practice better medicine, run more efficient practices and increase their relevance with pet owners, continue to show momentum. I was particularly pleased with our strong instrument placement success, including an almost 40% year over year growth in placements of our Catalyst Dx® chemistry analyzer, which bodes well for future consumable sales growth. Our other large line of business, the global reference laboratory and consulting services business, achieved 10% organic growth for the third consecutive quarter. Our pace of innovation continues with the recent release of Cornerstone® 8.2, the latest version of our flagship practice management system, as well as the launch of our I-Vision Mobile™ application, which allows veterinarians to view and share digital radiograph images using a mobile tablet. These latest innovations demonstrate our continued commitment to helping veterinarians efficiently manage diagnostic information and communicate that information effectively to clients."

Revenue Performance

Please refer to the table below entitled "Revenues and Revenue Growth Analysis by Product and Service Categories" in conjunction with the following discussion.

Companion Animal Group. Companion Animal Group ("CAG") revenues for the third quarter of 2011 were $248.1 million compared to $222.9 million for the third quarter of 2010. Organic revenue growth of 8% was due primarily to growth in our reference laboratory diagnostic and consulting services business and in our instrument and consumables business. In the reference laboratory diagnostic and consulting services business, revenues increased due to higher sales volume driven primarily by the acquisition of new customers and, to a lesser extent, an increase in net sales prices. The revenue increase in our instruments and consumables business was largely the result of higher unit sales volume of our Catalyst Dx® and ProCyte Dx® instruments and related consumables. Changes in foreign currency exchange rates contributed 3% to revenue growth.

Water. Water revenues for the third quarter of 2011 were $21.6 million compared to $20.0 million for the third quarter of 2010. Organic revenue growth of 4% was due primarily to higher Colilert® product sales volume driven by new account acquisitions, partly offset by lower average unit sales prices of this product. Changes in foreign currency exchange rates contributed 4% to revenue growth.

Livestock and Poultry Diagnostics. Livestock and Poultry Diagnostics ("LPD") revenues for the third quarter of 2011 were $20.7 million compared to $17.5 million for the third quarter of 2010. Organic revenue growth of 10% was primarily the result of higher sales volumes of certain bovine tests, especially in Germany where we have won several government tenders in connection with a country-wide eradication program for a virus impacting beef and dairy production yields. This growth was partly offset by lower sales volumes of certain swine tests and lower sales of Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy ("BSE" or "mad cow disease") tests resulting from the changes in European Union BSE testing requirements. Effective July 1, 2011, the age at which healthy cattle to be slaughtered are required to be tested for BSE in the European Union was increased from 48 months to 72 months, which is reducing the population of cattle tested for this disease. Changes in foreign currency exchange rates contributed 8% to revenue growth.

Additional Operating Results for the Third Quarter

Gross profit for the third quarter of 2011 increased $16.5 million, or 12%, to $158.7 million from $142.2 million for the third quarter of 2010. As a percentage of total revenue, gross profit remained steady at 53%.

Research and development ("R&D") expense for the third quarter of 2011 was $19.4 million, or 6% of revenue, compared to $17.2 million, or 6% of revenue for the third quarter of 2010. The increase in R&D expense was due primarily to increased personnel-related costs.

Selling, general and administrative ("SG&A") expense for the third quarter of 2011 was $83.2 million, or 28% of revenue, compared to $75.2 million, or 28% of revenue, for the third quarter of 2010. The increase in SG&A expense resulted primarily from the net unfavorable impact of changes in foreign currency exchange rates and higher sales and marketing personnel-related costs.

Supplementary Analysis of Results

The accompanying financial tables provide more information concerning our revenue and other operating results for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2011.

Outlook for Full Year 2011 and 2012

The Company provides the following updated guidance for the full year of 2011 and preliminary guidance for 2012. This guidance reflects an assumption that the value of the U.S. dollar relative to other currencies will remain at its current level for the balance of 2011 and 2012. Fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates from current levels could have a significant positive or negative impact on our actual results of operations in both years.

2011

• Revenues are expected to be approximately $1.215 billion, updated from guidance of $1.205 to $1.215 billion provided in July of this year, which represents reported growth of approximately 10% and organic growth of approximately 8%.
• Diluted earnings per share are expected to be in the range of $2.71 to $2.74, an increase from our previous guidance of $2.68 to $2.73.
• Free cash flow is expected to be approximately 115% of net income.(1)
• Capital expenditures are expected to be approximately $55 million.

2012

• Revenues are expected to be in the range of $1.295 to $1.315 billion, which represents reported revenue growth of 6% to 8% compared to projected revenue for 2011. Organic revenue growth, which excludes a projected 1% unfavorable impact from foreign currency related changes, is estimated to be in the range of 7% to 9%.
• Diluted earnings per share are expected to be in the range of $3.00 to $3.10.  

(1) Free cash flow is a non-GAAP measure. It indicates the cash generated from operations and tax benefits attributable to stock option exercises and vesting of restricted stock units, reduced by investments in fixed assets. We feel free cash flow is a useful measure because it indicates the cash the operations of the business are generating after appropriate reinvestment for recurring investments in fixed assets that are required to operate the business. We believe this is a common financial measure useful to further evaluate the results of operations. With respect to this particular forward-looking projection, the Company is unable to provide a quantitative reconciliation at this time as the inputs to the measurement are difficult to predict and estimate and are primarily dependent on future events.

Increased Share Repurchase Authorization

The Company also announced today that its Board of Directors has authorized the repurchase by the Company of an additional four million shares of its common stock in the open market (including through Rule 10b5-1 plans) or in negotiated transactions. These shares are in addition to 1,623,304 shares remaining as of September 30, 2011 under a previous Board authorization. The timing and amount of any repurchases will be at the discretion of the Company's management.

Conference Call and Webcast Information

IDEXX Laboratories will be hosting a conference call today at 9:00 a.m. (eastern) to discuss its third quarter results and management's outlook. To participate in the conference call, dial 1-612-288-0337 or 1-800-230-1085 and reference confirmation code 220384. An audio replay will be available through October 28, 2011 by dialing 1-320-365-3844 and referencing replay code 220384.

The call will also be available via live or archived Webcast on the IDEXX Laboratories' web site at www.idexx.com.

About IDEXX Laboratories, Inc.

IDEXX Laboratories, Inc. is a leader in pet healthcare innovation, serving practicing veterinarians around the world with a broad range of diagnostic and information technology-based products and services. IDEXX products enhance the ability of veterinarians to provide advanced medical care, improve staff efficiency and build more economically successful practices. IDEXX is also a worldwide leader in providing diagnostic tests and information for livestock and poultry and tests for the quality and safety of water and milk. Headquartered in Maine, IDEXX Laboratories employs more than 4,900 people and offers products to customers in over 100 countries.

Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains statements about the Company's business prospects and estimates of the Company's financial results for future periods that are forward-looking statements as defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of words such as "expects," "may," "anticipates," "intends," "would," "will," "plans," "believes," "estimates," "should," and similar words and expressions. These statements are based on management's expectations of future events as of the date of this press release, and the Company assumes no obligation to update any forward-looking statements as a result of new information or future events or developments. Actual results could differ materially from management's expectations. Factors that could cause or contribute to such differences include the following: the Company's ability to develop, manufacture, introduce and market new products and enhancements to existing products; the Company's ability to achieve economies of scale in its worldwide network of laboratories;the impact of a weak economy on demand for the Company's products and services; the effectiveness of the Company's sales and marketing activities; the Company's ability to identify acquisition opportunities, complete acquisitions and integrate acquired businesses; disruptions, shortages or pricing changes that affect the Company's purchases of products and materials from third parties, including from sole source suppliers; the Company's ability to manufacture complex biologic products; the effect of government regulation on the Company's business, including government decisions about whether and when to approve the Company's products and decisions regarding labeling, manufacturing and marketing products; the Company's ability to obtain patent and other intellectual property protection for its products, successfully enforce its intellectual property rights and defend itself against third party claims against the Company; the impact of distributor purchasing decisions on sales of the Company's products that are sold through distribution; the impact of competition, technological change, and veterinary hospital consolidation on the markets for the Company's products; changes or trends in veterinary medicine that affect the rate of use of the Company's products and services by veterinarians; the impact of the Company's inexperience in the human point-of-care market; the effects of operations outside the U.S., including from currency fluctuations, different regulatory, political and economic conditions, and different market conditions; the effects of interruptions to the Company's operations due to natural disasters or system failures; the loss of key employees; class action litigation due to stock price volatility; the effect on the Company's stock price if quarterly or annual operations results do not meet expectations of market analysts or investors in future periods; and potential exposures related to our worldwide provision for income taxes. A further description of these and other factors can be found in the Company's Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended June 30, 2011, in the section captioned "Risk Factors."

Contact: Merilee Raines, Chief Financial Officer, 1-207-556-8155