Abbott Laboratories on June 1 lowered its financial outlook for 2021, citing a sharp drop in demand for COVID-19 testing.
The company previously forecast $6.5 billion to $7 billion in sales from COVID-19 testing for 2021. Abbott now expects$4 billion to $4.5 billion in sales, President and CEO Robert Ford said during a June 1 call with investors.
The company projects full-year adjusted earnings from continuing operations of $4.30 to $4.50 per share, down from a prior forecast of $5 per share in January.
"We've recently seen a rapid decline in COVID-19 testing demand and anticipate this trend will continue, which led us to adjust our full-year guidance," Mr. Ford said in a news release.
The company also cited the ongoing vaccine rollout and updated federal testing guidelines for fully vaccinated adults as reasons for the dip in testing.