Global medtech announces 7.6% rise in profits
Smith+Nephew has announced full-year trading profits of $970m (£764m), a rise of 7.6%, on the back of a 7.2% rise in underlying revenues.
The global medtech said underlying growth in its orthopaedics division was 5.7%, advanced wound management was up 6.4%, and sports medicine and ENT were up 10% despite headwinds from a slow China market.
Underlying revenues were up from $5.2bn (£4.1bn) to $5.5bn (£4.3bn). It announced a full-year dividend of 37.5c a share, matching last year’s dividend.
The firm said its acquisition of CartiHeal had strengthened its leadership in sports medecine healing. It expected its 12-point strategic plan was starting to translate into financial outcomes, and expected it to more than offset headwinds in 2024, and expected underlying revenue growth of 5-6% in the coming year.
It was continuing to invest in iunnovation to deliver higher growth and deliver a strong pipeline of new products.
Chief executive Deepak Nath said, “I am pleased with our overall performance in 2023, as our actions to transform Smith+Nephew have begun to translate into meaningful financial outcomes. We delivered revenue growth ahead of guidance for the full year and made important improvements to our trading profit margin against a challenging macro-environment.
“Our 12-point plan is on track. While there is more to do to enhance our performance in US reconstruction, our orthopaedics business is progressing along a clear improvement path. 2023 was another year of good growth for our sports medicine & ENT and advanced wound management businesses.
“Our investment in innovation continues to deliver, with almost half of our 2023 growth coming from products launched in the last five years. We were pleased to add major launches in robotics, shoulder arthroplasty and negative pressure wound therapy to the portfolio during the year.
“We have entered 2024 as a fundamentally stronger business and look forward to delivering another year of robust growth and further margin expansion.”
