Abiomed’s 3rd-quarter loss narrows on higher Impella system sales, lowers revenue outlook

Abiomed fiscal 3Q loss narrows on Impella sales

DANVERS, Mass. — Heart device maker Abiomed Inc. reported a smaller fiscal 2010 third-quarter loss Thursday, as the company said sales of its Impella systems increased.

For the quarter ended Dec. 31, Abiomed said it lost $4.6 million, or 12 cents per share, compared with a loss of $7.7 million, or 21 cents per share, a year earlier. Revenue rose 32 percent to $22.8 million from $17.3 million.

Excluding one-time items like stock based compensation, Abiomed said it lost 5 cents per share. Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expected a loss of 18 cents per share and $22.6 million in revenue.

Abiomed makes the Impella Cardiac Assist Device system, which allows surgeons to implant a device that keeps a patient’s blood flowing during and after surgery to relieve heart failure. The company said revenue from sales of Impella 2.5 nearly doubled to $15.9 million.

The company lowered its fiscal 2010 revenue forecast to a range between $84 million and $86 million from prior guidance of $86 million to $91 million in revenue. Analysts expect $87.2 million.

Shares of Abiomed rose 35 cents, or 4.4 percent, to $8.36 in afternoon trading.