Quest Diagnostics Q1 Profit Decreases, but beats estimates

(RTTNews) - Quest Diagnostics (DGX) announced earnings for first quarter that decreased from the same period last year but beat the Street estimates.

The company's earnings came in at $355 million, or $2.92 per share. This compares with $469 million, or $3.46 per share, in last year's first quarter.

Excluding items, Quest Diagnostics reported adjusted earnings of $392 million or $3.22 per share for the period.

Analysts on average had expected the company to earn $2.97 per share, according to figures compiled by Thomson Reuters. Analysts' estimates typically exclude special items.

The company's revenue for the quarter fell 4.0% to $2.61 billion from $2.72 billion last year.

Quest Diagnostics earnings at a glance (GAAP) :

-Earnings (Q1): $355 Mln. vs. $469 Mln. last year. -EPS (Q1): $2.92 vs. $3.46 last year. -Analyst Estimates: $2.97 -Revenue (Q1): $2.61 Bln vs. $2.72 Bln last year.

-Guidance: Full year EPS guidance: Adj; $9.00 - $9.50 Full year revenue guidance: $9.2 - $9.5 Bln