Why Abiomed Stock Is Flying High

Investors in Abiomed (NASDAQ: ABMD), should be smiling from ear to ear today. Shares of the heart recovery medical device maker jumped as much as 12% in early morning trading on Thursday after the company reported stellar fiscal 2018 fourth-quarter results and issued bullish guidance. As of 11:08 a.m. EDT, the stock was up about 9%.

Abiomed’s fiscal fourth-quarter results were strong across the board. Here are a few of the highlights from the period:

• Revenue jumped 40% to $174.4 million. For context, Wall Street was only expecting $164 million.
• Operating margin soared to 27.3% for the period. That was up 400 basis points year over year.
• GAAP net income was $36.8 million, or $0.80 per share. That was far higher than the $0.64 that analysts were projecting.
• Cash balance at quarter-end stood at $400 million. The balance sheet remains debt-free.

Abiomed also shared guidance that suggests that the good times will continue:

• Revenue in the fiscal year 2019 is expected to land between $740 million and $770 million. This represents growth of 25% to 30% over the prior year, and the midpoint of this range exceeds the $747 million that Wall Street was expecting.
• GAAP operating margin is forecast to continue moving higher, to a range of 28% to 30%.

All in all, Abiomed proved once again that its business remains on fire.

Looking beyond the financials, Abiomed had a number of other positive updates to share with investors:

• The company received two label expansion claims for its Impella heart pumps in February. These new indications should expand its addressable market in the U.S.
• Abiomed received FDA approval for a new Impella pump called the CP in early April.
• Also in April, the company won European approval for its Impella 5.5.

In total, Abiomed continues to provide investors with reasons to believe that its exponential growth rate can continue from here. While shares continue to trade at a nosebleed valuation — the stock is currently selling for more than 27 times trailing sales — I don’t think that long-term investors should be looking to cash in their chips anytime soon.

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