Abiomed posts 30% growth on rising heart pump demand

Dive Brief:

Abiomed has finalized the preliminary third quarter results it shared last month, confirming that its sales grew 30% to a forecast-busting $201 million.
The growth was driven by rising demand for the Impella heart pump in all geographies and indications.
Abiomed expects these growth drivers to continue firing in the coming quarter, emboldening it to raise its revenue forecast and narrow its earnings guidance.

Dive Insight:

Abiomed has emerged as one of the fastest growing medical device companies on public markets as demand for its Impella heart pump has taken off. In the U.S., rising use of the pump in the treatment of cardiogenic shock and percutaneous coronary intervention drove sales up 27%, while demand in Germany and Japan fueled 59% growth internationally.

The double-digit growth continues the trend seen earlier in the year. Sales over the first nine months of Abiomed’s fiscal year grew 34%, and observers think there is scope for the growth to continue.

“As good as it looks now, with new products, indications and geographies, the market for Impella is proving much bigger,” analysts at Jefferies wrote in a note to investors.

Abiomed’s efforts to expand the indications addressable by its devices take in ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) and chronic heart failure. A pivotal trial in STEMI is due to start this year, leading the Jefferies analysts to forecast that Abiomed could enter a market worth up to $6 billion in 2021. Chronic heart failure is another blockbuster opportunity.

“The size of these new opportunities and how close they are to realization could be a surprise to many,” the Jefferies analysts wrote.

Abiomed is also rolling out new products to strengthen its grip on its existing markets. This week, the company received a CE mark for Impella Connect, a cloud-based system that enables physicians to view the Impella console remotely.

The European regulatory clearance sets Abiomed up to increase use of the technology. Abiomed has already provided the technology to 36 hospitals in the U.S. These sites are providing Abiomed with input to support the ongoing refinement of the system but in the longer term Abiomed plans to start making money from the technology.

“Once we hit a certain number, around 100 sites in the U.S., we will be looking at some type of service model, software model where we’ll tier the pricing based on the outcomes and productivity of their team,” Abiomed CEO Mike Minogue said on the third quarter results conference call.

Those sales will kick in some time down the line but even without them Abiomed is growing quickly. On the back of the third quarter results, Abiomed raised its full-year guidance to $780 million, from a prior range of $765 million to $770 million.