St. Jude Medical 1st-Quarter Profit Rises

ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) — Medical-device maker St. Jude Medical's first-quarter net income rose almost 12 percent, helped by higher sales of its implantable defibrillators and devices that treat a type of irregular heartbeat.

The company said four new product approvals in the U.S. will boost sales in the second half of the year and gave guidance within range of analyst expectations.

Net income rose to $249 million, or 86 cents per share, for the three months ended March 29 compared with $223 million, or 78 cents per share last year. Excluding restructuring and other costs, it earned 96 cents per share. Analysts expected 95 cents per share, according to FactSet.

Revenue rose nearly 2 percent to $1.36 billion from $1.34 billion last year. Analysts expected $1.36 billion.

Looking forward, the company expects net income to be 99 cents to $1.01 per share for the second quarter and $3.95 to $4 for the year, excluding one-time items.

Analysts expect $1 per share and $3.98 per share for the full year, respectively.

Its shares fell $1.48, or 2.3 percent, to $61.74 in morning trading. Its shares had been up 2 percent so far this year through Tuesday.