Medtronic 4Q profit tops Wall Street forecasts

Medtronic PLC said higher sales of heart and surgical devices helped give a boost to its fiscal fourth-quarter profit, topping Wall Street expectations.

The medical device maker's profit rose 5.3 percent to $1.16 billion, or 84 cents per share. Earnings, adjusted for amortization costs and non-recurring costs, came to $1.33 per share, topping expectations.

The average estimate of 12 analysts surveyed by Zacks Investment Research was for earnings of $1.31 per share.

The Dublin-based company's revenue rose 4.6 percent to $7.92 billion in the period, also beating Street forecasts. Twelve analysts surveyed by Zacks expected $7.86 billion.

Sales at Medtronic's cardiac and vascular unit, which makes implantable heart devices and valves, rose 4 percent to $2.85 billion, while the division that makes surgical staplers and breathing ventilators grew sales 6 percent to $2.61 billion.

For the year, the company reported profit of $4.03 billion, or $2.89 per share. Revenue was reported as $29.71 billion.

Medtronic shares have increased 19 percent since the beginning of the year, while the Standard & Poor's 500 index has climbed slightly more than 7 percent. The stock has risen roughly 5 percent in the last 12 months.

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Elements of this story were generated by Automated Insights using data from Zacks Investment Research. Access a Zacks stock report on MDT at https://www.zacks.com/ap/MDT

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Keywords: Medtronic, Earnings Report