AMO announces profit increases

Advanced Medical Optics (AMO) has announced its financial results for the third quarter of 2006, showing an increase in net sales and income.

The company generated net sales of $258.6 million (136.2 million pounds), 4.2 per cent higher than the same quarter in 2005, while the company saw a net income of $87.2 million (45.8 million pounds), compared to a $31.2 million (16.4 million pounds) loss in the third quarter last year.

Jim Mazzo, chairman, president and chief executive officer, said: “Our third-quarter results demonstrate meaningful progress in terms of sales growth, market penetration of branded technologies, operating expense management and cash flow from operations.”

He added that though these results showed a favourable trend for the strength of the company’s strategy, it was nevertheless taking on a more cautious forecast for the remainder of 2006 and 2007, due to difficult pricing environments for its cataract products and the market conditions in some business segments.

Last month, AMO reduced its revenue and adjusted EPS outlook for 2006, citing slower adoption of refractive implants in the international market, below-expectation laser vision correction procedure volumes in the US and strikes in Europe by surgeons using the company’s cataract products.