Medtronic's surgical device sales decline due to inventory issues
CEO Martha monitors impact of Trump's tariffs
Shares down more than 7% in morning trade
Rewrites paragraph 1, adds investor comment in paragraph 4, company comments on tariffs in paragraphs 6-9
By Sriparna Roy and Puyaan Singh
Feb 18 (Reuters) - Medtronic MDT.N on Tuesday missed Wall Street estimates for third-quarter revenue due to lower purchases of its surgical devices by distributors and said the problems would persist in the current quarter, sending shares down more than 7%.
Some distributors brought down their inventory levels below normal towards the end of the third quarter, which pressured the unit, along with ongoing competitive pressures in the surgical staplers market.
Medtronic said the problems would impact its fourth-quarter results as well but expects it to resolve starting fiscal year 2026, when the distributors reach their target inventory level.
"They should have managed (the inventory issue) better to not let it happen," said Jeff Jonas, portfolio manager at Gabelli Funds, adding that he expects the problem to subside in the next fiscal.
The unit, which makes surgical devices including robot-assisted ones, saw sales decline 1.9% to $2.07 billion, missing estimates of $2.13 billion, according to data compiled by LSEG.
Meanwhile, the company is closely monitoring the impact of tariff plans unveiled by U.S. President Donald Trump in recent days, Medtronic CEO Geoff Martha told Reuters in an interview.
The company does not have a big manufacturing footprint in China but would be closely monitoring any tariffs related to Mexico, where it has some sites, Martha said.
The potential impact has been factored into the company's forecast, he added.
"We're not going to overreact... We've got to see how they play out, see if we believe they're longer term, and then make a determination."
The company's adjusted profit per share of $1.39 for the quarter beat analysts' estimate by 3 cents.
The company reiterated that it sees its annual profit to be between $5.44 and $5.50 per share. Analysts estimate the company's annual profit at $5.45.
Medtronic's third-quarter segment wise sales https://reut.rs/3X4cLNe
(Reporting by Puyaan Singh and Sriparna Roy in Bengaluru; Editing by Pooja Desai and Leroy Leo)
((Puyaan.Singh@thomsonreuters.com))
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