Topic: Growth Stocks

IDEXX LABORATORIES INC. $72

IDEXX LABORATORIES INC. $72(Nasdaq symbol IDXX; Aggressive Growth Portfolio, Manufacturing & Industry sector; Shares outstanding: 89.6 million; Market cap: $6.5 billion; Priceto- sales ratio: 4.0; No dividends paid; TSINetwork Rating: Average; www.idexx.com) makes equipment that veterinarians use to detect diseases in pets. It also makes systems that detect contaminants in livestock and water.

Idexx continues to see strong demand for its Catalyst One system, which analyzes an animal’s blood in 15 minutes. That makes veterinarians less reliant on outside labs, and cuts their costs.

Idexx earned $2.11 a share in 2015, up 5.5% from $2.00 in 2014 (all per-share amounts adjusted for 2-for-1 split in June 2015). Sales rose 7.8%, to $1.6 billion from $1.5 billion.

The company’s earnings will probably improve to $2.14 a share in 2016. But the stock trades at an expensive at 33.6 times that forecast.

Idexx is still a hold.

Comments

Tell Us What YOU Think

You must be logged in to post a comment.

Please be respectful with your comments and help us keep this an area that everyone can enjoy. If you believe a comment is abusive or otherwise violates our Terms of Use, please click here to report it to the administrator.