Immucor (BLUD) recently announced its guidance for fiscal 2011 (year ending May 31, 2011). The company projects consolidated revenues to range between $345 million and $355 million, in fiscal 2011, up 6% to 8% from the guidance for fiscal 2010. Immucor expects fiscal 2010 revenues in the range of $326 million to $330 million. Consolidated revenues are expected to be up 9% to 11% year over year in constant currency terms.
 
Immucor’s assumptions take into consideration that growth in revenues will be impacted by both volume contribution, primarily in the form of increased sales of reagents, and price contribution. About two-thirds of the company’s combined Capture and traditional reagent sales are contractual in nature.
 
The company expects consolidated gross margin between 70.5% and 71.5% for fiscal 2011; while diluted earnings per share (EPS) are estimated in the range of $1.23 to $1.29, up 8% to 11% from the guidance provided for fiscal 2010. The company expects EPS in the range of $1.14 to $1.16 for fiscal 2010. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for fiscal 2010 and 2011 were $1.15 and $1.27, respectively.
 
Immucor assumes that it will receive orders for about 100 to 130 Neo instruments and 200 to 240 Echo instruments during fiscal 2011, which should further boost the topline going forward.
 
Immucor develops, manufactures and sells a complete line of automated systems and reagents used in a number of tests to detect certain properties of human blood prior to blood transfusion. The blood bank industry is highly competitive.
 
In the US and Canada, Immucor faces stiff competition from Johnson & Johnson’s (JNJ) Ortho-Clinical Diagnostics in manufacturing of blood banking reagents. In addition, Immucor competes with Biotest AG (a German pharmaceutical and diagnostic company), Alba Bioscience (a Scottish company) and DiaMed AG (a Swiss company), among others.
 
We currently have a Neutral rating on Immucor.
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