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Alcon (ALC) Gains From Growing Market Demand, New Launches
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Alcon (ALC - Free Report) has been gaining from strong market rebound. The company’s focus on research and innovation is also encouraging. It currently carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).
Alcon’s Surgical business continues to gain from the company’s diverse portfolio and incremental innovation. In Implantables, excluding the impact from the Korea Presbyopia-correcting Intraocular Lens reimbursement change, the company is seeing strong growth, courtesy of Vivity rollout in select international markets like Japan and Canada.
Going by Alcon’s latest update, feedback from surgeons has been extremely positive so far. With Vivity and PanOptix, Alcon continues to lead the Advanced Technology Intraocular Lenses category in the United States and international market. In China, where the IOL business is under-indexed, Alcon is currently preparing to launch Vivity by 2023 end. The launch will likely accelerate the company’s share in this important market as it returns to significant growth.
Within Vision Care, Alcon has been registering solid growth, banking on strong sales of its contact lenses and ocular health products. In contact lenses, the company is successfully executing its strategy of investing in fast-growing market segments where it has significant opportunities. As a result of this, Alcon is at present outpacing market growth in every category in which it has launched products.
Within reusable lenses, TOTAL30 and TOTAL30 for astigmatism are witnessing strong market acceptance. Recently, Alcon has expanded the TOTAL30 family in the United States and Europe with the launch of its multifocal modality. In terms of Daily Lenses, the company is benefiting from the strong performance of Toric lenses, including Precision1 and DAILIES TOTAL1 Toric.
The company currently sees meaningful share gains, driven by its toric product launches, including Precision1, Total30 and Dailies Total1. It introduced Total30 for astigmatism in the first quarter, the first reusable lenses water gradient technology created specifically for astigmatic wearers. The initial customer response has been exceptional. Total 30 toric is currently available in the United States and parts of Europe, and Alcon looks to expand availability to additional markets throughout 2023.
Shares of Alcon have risen 10.8% over the past year against the industry’s 10% decline.
On the flip side, Alcon is experiencing inflationary pressures in electronic components, freight, labor, resins and plastics that are impacting margins. The company is also encountering supply chain challenges in certain components, including microchips, resins and plastics, metals and filters. The company expects these inflationary pressures and supply chain challenges to continue into 2023. The cost of net sales in the second quarter was up 4.1% year over year. Selling, general and administration expenses rose 3.6% year over year.
Meanwhile, the ophthalmology industry is highly competitive. In both surgical and vision care businesses, Alcon faces intense competition. In the surgical business, Alcon faces a mixture of competitors, ranging from large manufacturers with multiple business lines to small manufacturers that offer a limited selection of specialized products. The company also faces competition from providers of alternative medical therapies, such as pharmaceutical companies, which have the potential to disrupt core elements of its business.
Cardinal Health stock has risen 35% in the past year. Earnings estimates for 2023 have increased from $6.65 to $6.66 and remained constant at $7.56 for 2024 in the past 30 days.
CAH’s earnings beat estimates in each of the trailing four quarters, delivering an average surprise of 16.03%. In the last reported quarter, it posted an earnings surprise of 4.73%.
Estimates for Haemonetics’ 2023 earnings per share have remained constant at $3.82 in the past 30 days. Shares of the company have increased 15.2% in the past year against the industry’s decline of 2.8%.
QTRX’s earnings beat estimates in each of the trailing four quarters, delivering an average surprise of 19.39%. In the last reported quarter, it delivered an earnings surprise of 38.16%.
Estimates for Align Technology’s 2023 earnings have moved up from $8.77 to $8.78 per share in the past 30 days. Shares of the company have increased 37.7% in the past year compared with the industry’s growth of 25%.
ALGN’s earnings beat estimates in three of the trailing four quarters and missed in one. In the last reported quarter, it delivered an earnings surprise of 9.90%.
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Alcon (ALC) Gains From Growing Market Demand, New Launches
Alcon (ALC - Free Report) has been gaining from strong market rebound. The company’s focus on research and innovation is also encouraging. It currently carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).
Alcon’s Surgical business continues to gain from the company’s diverse portfolio and incremental innovation. In Implantables, excluding the impact from the Korea Presbyopia-correcting Intraocular Lens reimbursement change, the company is seeing strong growth, courtesy of Vivity rollout in select international markets like Japan and Canada.
Going by Alcon’s latest update, feedback from surgeons has been extremely positive so far. With Vivity and PanOptix, Alcon continues to lead the Advanced Technology Intraocular Lenses category in the United States and international market. In China, where the IOL business is under-indexed, Alcon is currently preparing to launch Vivity by 2023 end. The launch will likely accelerate the company’s share in this important market as it returns to significant growth.
Within Vision Care, Alcon has been registering solid growth, banking on strong sales of its contact lenses and ocular health products. In contact lenses, the company is successfully executing its strategy of investing in fast-growing market segments where it has significant opportunities. As a result of this, Alcon is at present outpacing market growth in every category in which it has launched products.
Alcon Price and Consensus
Alcon price-consensus-chart | Alcon Quote
Within reusable lenses, TOTAL30 and TOTAL30 for astigmatism are witnessing strong market acceptance. Recently, Alcon has expanded the TOTAL30 family in the United States and Europe with the launch of its multifocal modality. In terms of Daily Lenses, the company is benefiting from the strong performance of Toric lenses, including Precision1 and DAILIES TOTAL1 Toric.
The company currently sees meaningful share gains, driven by its toric product launches, including Precision1, Total30 and Dailies Total1. It introduced Total30 for astigmatism in the first quarter, the first reusable lenses water gradient technology created specifically for astigmatic wearers. The initial customer response has been exceptional. Total 30 toric is currently available in the United States and parts of Europe, and Alcon looks to expand availability to additional markets throughout 2023.
Shares of Alcon have risen 10.8% over the past year against the industry’s 10% decline.
On the flip side, Alcon is experiencing inflationary pressures in electronic components, freight, labor, resins and plastics that are impacting margins. The company is also encountering supply chain challenges in certain components, including microchips, resins and plastics, metals and filters. The company expects these inflationary pressures and supply chain challenges to continue into 2023. The cost of net sales in the second quarter was up 4.1% year over year. Selling, general and administration expenses rose 3.6% year over year.
Meanwhile, the ophthalmology industry is highly competitive. In both surgical and vision care businesses, Alcon faces intense competition. In the surgical business, Alcon faces a mixture of competitors, ranging from large manufacturers with multiple business lines to small manufacturers that offer a limited selection of specialized products. The company also faces competition from providers of alternative medical therapies, such as pharmaceutical companies, which have the potential to disrupt core elements of its business.
Key Picks
Some other top-ranked stocks in the broader medical space are Cardinal Health (CAH - Free Report) , Haemonetics (HAE - Free Report) and Align Technology (ALGN - Free Report) , each carrying a Zacks Rank #2. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
Cardinal Health stock has risen 35% in the past year. Earnings estimates for 2023 have increased from $6.65 to $6.66 and remained constant at $7.56 for 2024 in the past 30 days.
CAH’s earnings beat estimates in each of the trailing four quarters, delivering an average surprise of 16.03%. In the last reported quarter, it posted an earnings surprise of 4.73%.
Estimates for Haemonetics’ 2023 earnings per share have remained constant at $3.82 in the past 30 days. Shares of the company have increased 15.2% in the past year against the industry’s decline of 2.8%.
QTRX’s earnings beat estimates in each of the trailing four quarters, delivering an average surprise of 19.39%. In the last reported quarter, it delivered an earnings surprise of 38.16%.
Estimates for Align Technology’s 2023 earnings have moved up from $8.77 to $8.78 per share in the past 30 days. Shares of the company have increased 37.7% in the past year compared with the industry’s growth of 25%.
ALGN’s earnings beat estimates in three of the trailing four quarters and missed in one. In the last reported quarter, it delivered an earnings surprise of 9.90%.