By Anna Prior
Danaher Corp. said Chief Executive H. Lawrence Culp Jr. will
retire next March and will be succeeded by executive vice president
Thomas P. Joyce, Jr.
The selection "reflects the culmination of our succession
planning process," said Chairman Steven M. Rales, noting that Mr.
Culp has held the position for 13 years and has been with Danaher
since 1990. Mr. Culp will continue at Danaher in an advisory role
into the first quarter of 2016.
Mr. Joyce, meanwhile, has held several positions at Danaher, and
has responsibility for Danaher's water quality, life sciences and
diagnostics platforms, which collectively represent over $9 billion
of annual revenues, the company said.
Separately, the manufacturer reported first-quarter earnings
fell 16%, as a gain on the sale of an unconsolidated joint venture
a year earlier masked a rise in revenue during the most recent
period.
Danaher, which makes testing, diagnostic and medical equipment,
has improved revenue in recent years through acquisitions. However,
restructuring charges, cost-cutting activities, and weakening
economic and market conditions had pressured the company's bottom
line.
For the second quarter, Danaher projected per-share earnings of
90 cents to 94 cents, below the 96 cents a share forecast of
analysts polled by Thomson Reuters.
Meanwhile, for the quarter ended March 28, Danaher reported a
profit of $579.7 million, or 81 cents a share, down from $691.9
million, or 98 cents a share, a year earlier. Excluding a gain on
the sale of an investment in Apex Tool Group LLC in the
first-quarter of 2013, among other items, earnings rose from an
adjusted 75 cents a share a year earlier.
Sales rose 4.9% to $4.66 billion, while core revenues increased
3.5% from the year earlier period.
In January, the company had forecast per-share earnings of 76
cents to 80 cents on core revenue growth of 3%. Analysts were
expecting total revenue of $4.67 billion.
Gross margin widened slightly to 52.6% from 52.3%.
Shares of the company, which backed its full-year outlook,
closed Wednesday at $73.65 and were flat in after-hours trading.
Through the close, the stock has risen 21% in the last 12
months.
Write to Anna Prior at anna.prior@wsj.com
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