First quarter revenue growth for IBO’s Laboratory Instrument Sales Index jumped 7.3%, 6.8% excluding currency, to $6,308 million. Adjusted operating profit advanced 13.5% to $1,376 million, and operating margin expanded 20 basis points to 18.3% of sales. Financial estimates are included for Oxford Instruments, Spectris and Tecan, which have yet to report first quarter financial data. Thermo Fisher Scientific financial results now include revenues of Life Sciences Solutions and Analytical Instruments.

Affymetrix first quarter sales grew 6.4%, or 8.6% excluding the divested Anatrace product line (see IBO 10/15/13), to $83.0 million (see page 12). All figures below are calculated on an organic basis, excluding the divestment. Product revenue grew 5.2%, including 4.9% and 11.0% growth for Consumables and Instruments sales, to account for 84% and 5% of revenues, respectively. Service and Other revenue jumped 45.3% to make up 11% due to the first completed installment of DNA-genotyping services for the UK Biobank, but were partially offset by lower royalty and license revenue. Overall, sales grew in North America, Europe and China but declined in Japan. Adjusted gross profit margin advanced 230 basis points to 61.2% of sales. Adjusted operating profit jumped 53.1% to $3.6 million.

Quarterly Affymetrix Genetic Analysis and Clinical Applications sales climbed 35.9%, driven by record Axiom revenue and CytoScan sales. Genotyping products and services grew roughly 32%, led by demand for custom arrays, biobanking samples and increased ag-bio demand. Cytogenetic sales grew more than 25% to make up 12% of revenues due to growing demand for reproductive health and oncology research applications as well as new OncoScan products. Life Science Reagents sales improved 2.1% to account for 8% of sales. Expression sales declined 4.5% to make up 22%, as higher sales of human-transcriptome arrays were offset by lower demand for in vitro transcription arrays, especially in Japan. Total Affymetrix Core revenue grew 9.3% to make up 72% of sales. EBioscience sales grew 6.8% to make up 28% of revenues, led by demand for single-cell products and double-digit growth for QuantiGene products, which were transferred from the Expression business. The company also noted an uptick in academic sales, as volume for flow cytometry products in the US increased. For the year, the eBioscience business is expected to grow in the mid- to high single digits. The company also projected continued strength for the Genotyping business due to new biobanking projects in China, Brazil and Taiwan. Expression sales are expected to decline in the mid- to high single digits.

Fiscal second quarter sales for Analytik Jena Analytical Instrumentation (AI) business declined 5.3% to €14.1 million ($19.3 million = €0.73 = $1) to account for 46% of revenues (see page 12). While segment sales declined in most geographic regions, particularly Japan, demand for TOC systems for water quality analysis in China was strong. AI gross profit slipped 90 basis points to 54.7% of sales, and adjusted operating profit contracted 83.7% to €0.3 million ($0.4 million). Life Science (LS) revenue rose 50.4% to €9.7 million ($13.3 million) to account for 32% of sales. This growth was primarily driven by acquisitions, as organic sales declined due to price competition for Biometra thermal cyclers and slower sales for AJ Roboscreen and AJ Innuscreen. LS operating margin contracted 370 basis points to 44.8% of sales. Adjusted operating loss widened nearly threefold to €0.3 million ($0.5 million). For fiscal 2014, AI sales are projected to be flat or slightly higher and SI sales are expected to grow due to acquisitions and new products.

For the first quarter, HORIBA Process and Environmental Instruments & Systems (P&E) revenue climbed 38.1%, roughly 20% organically, to ¥4,324 million ($42.1 million = ¥102.80 = $1) to account for 13% of revenues (see page 12). The product acquisition from Cameron (see IBO 4/15/13) contributed roughly double digits to sales growth. Currency benefits were in the high single digits. Backlog expanded 12.6% to ¥3,780 million ($36.8 million). Sales of water quality analyzers increased in Japan, and demand for stack gas analyzers and services for power plants strengthened in Japan and China. Japanese sales climbed 14.4% to account for 58% of P&E revenue. Including currency benefits and the acquisition, sales to the Americas and Europe grew 96.0% and 59.8% to each make up 13%, respectively. Asian sales more than doubled to represent 16%. P&E operating income grew 83.4% to ¥653 million ($6.4 million) due to currency and the acquisition. The company maintained its 2014 P&E segment revenue and operating income forecasts of ¥15,500 million ($152 million = ¥102 = $1) and ¥1,300 million ($13 million), respectively.

HORIBA Scientific Instruments & Systems (SI) segment sales improved 13.3%, roughly 3% organically, to ¥5,637 million ($54.8 million) to account for 17% of company revenues. Backlog jumped 37.6% to ¥7,599 million ($73.9 million). Segment operating profit loss was ¥260 million ($2.5 million), compared to a profit of ¥48 million ($0.5 million), due to increased expenses in Europe. Japanese sales grew 6.7% to account for 37% of SI sales. Sales to Asia, the Americas and Europe climbed 50.4%, 2.1% and 14.2% due to currency to account for 18%, 22% and 23% of segment sales, respectively. SI’s full-year sales and operating income forecasts of ¥24,500 million ($240 million) and ¥1,000 million ($10 million), respectively, were unchanged.

Fiscal fourth quarter sales for Shimadzu Analytical and Measuring Instrument (AMI) division jumped 22.9%, roughly 17% excluding currency, to ¥59.0 billion ($574.0 million = ¥102.80 = $1) to represent 62% of revenues (see page 12). AMI operating profit climbed 62.4% to ¥11.3 billion ($109.8 million) due to currency.

For the fiscal year ending March 31, Shimadzu AMI sales grew 18.4%, roughly 8% excluding currency, to ¥182.2 billion ($1.8 billion = ¥100.25 = $1) to represent 59% of revenues. AMI operating profit rose 83.9% to ¥23.2 billion ($231.9 million). Japanese sales were strong led by pharmaceutical and chemical customers, and academic and government demand due to stimulus spending. Japanese sales of LC, MS, testing machines and surface analyzers all increased. North American and European revenues were robust due to currency conversion, new products and demand for LC products from pharmaceutical and chemical customers. MS sales increased due to lab-testing customers in North America, government and environmental markets in Europe, and food safety applications in China. Sales of environmental analyzers were also higher in China due to increased regulations.