MDS rebounds from reactor shutdown

Article Excerpt

MDS INC. $20 (Toronto symbol MDS; Conservative Growth Portfolio, Consumer sector; Shares outstanding: 122.4 million; Market cap: $2.4 billion; SI Rating: Average) operates in three medical-related fields: contract drug research (roughly 45% of revenue), analytical devices (35%) and medical isotopes for cancer treatments (20%). The stock fell to $16 in February 2008 after the nuclear reactor that supplies the bulk of its isotopes had to shut down for maintenance. The disruption cut MDS’s pre-tax profits by $5 million (all amounts except share price and market cap in U.S. dollars). The stock has since risen 25%. In its first fiscal quarter ended January 31, 2008, earnings rose 6.3%, to $17 million from $16 million a year earlier. Earnings per share rose 27.3%, to $0.14 from $0.11, on fewer shares outstanding. However, if you exclude unusual items, earnings per share fell 28.6%, to $0.05 from $0.07. Revenue grew 22.0%, to $322 million from $264 million. Irregularities at MDS’s Montreal lab in the past two years…