Oct 21, 2026 earnings call — Planned spin-off of nutrition business
Abbott announced a planned separation of its nutrition business and reported Q3 adjusted EPS of $1.42 and sales growth of 7%.
Revenue $13.0B (est $13.0B) · EPS $1.42 (est $1.42)
Key quotes
"Today marks an important milestone in Abbott's history. Along with reporting our third quarter results, we announced our intention to separate our nutrition business into an independent, publicly traded company."
"In electrophysiology, our third quarter results reflect the early beginning of our growth acceleration phase. Growth in the quarter was mid-teens or high teens when excluding LAA."
"CGMs, they are a behavior modification tool. They're not doing anything to your body."
Analyst Q&A 7
reason for Nutrition spin
Q (Robert Marcus · JPMorgan): Why spin the Nutrition business now instead of selling it? What is the strategic rationale and sequencing?
A: Management said Nutrition has strong growth potential in healthy nutrition and would move faster as an independent company. They believe the business is a unique, global pure-play and that a spinoff best positions it to capture the opportunity while allowing Abbott to sequence other portfolio moves.
"We just came to the conclusion that this was too exciting of an opportunity, and we just believe that all the things that they would need to do, they'd probably be able to do it faster and more efficiently and effectively as an independent company." — Robert Ford (CEO·CHAIR)
NEC liability and guidance drivers
Q (Larry Biegelsen · Wells Fargo): Will NEC litigation liability stay with Abbott? Also, what drove the revenue guidance cut and implications for 2027?
A: Management said resolving litigation is not required before the separation and both Abbott and the new company will be well capitalized to defend legal positions; they will provide more detail later. For guidance, the Q4 revenue reduction reflects short-term headwinds in EP and diabetes — EP affected by LAA market dynamics and device timing, and diabetes by slower type 2 penetration and international pricing pressure — and they expect to be conservative when setting 2027 sales guidance but see opportunities to accelerate during the year.
"I'd say both Abbott and the new company are going to be well capitalized." — Robert Ford (CEO·CHAIR)
pipeline strength and highlights
Q (Patrick Wood · UBS): How does the forward pipeline compare to the past and which programs are underappreciated or key focus areas?
A: Management said the pipeline is visible and healthy with multiple shots across businesses, and they are increasing R&D spend above pre-COVID levels. They highlighted AVEIR CSP, mitral replacement (Cephea), TAVR, IVL, neuromodulation, Libre platform expansion, and biosimilars as important opportunities and said if several programs succeed they could materially change growth.
"If 2 or 3 hit, it'll be incredible, I think, to be able to kind of leverage that." — Robert Ford (CEO·CHAIR)
cancer diagnostics trends and impact
Q (Matt Taylor · Jefferies): Can you discuss cancer diagnostics performance, Cologuard trends, the cyber impact, and Freenome?
A: Management said diagnostics grew 14% but fell short of expectations largely because a July cybersecurity event caused short connectivity outages that reduced volume for about 7-10 days and cost roughly a point of growth. They said Cologuard is accelerating with mid-teens growth and new user gains, the new CRC blood test just began promotion late in Q3 so its contribution will grow, and the diagnostics business has improved margins into the high teens.
"When they did bring me the forecast, and they talked about, well, the cyber had an impact, as you would expect, I had to double click on that." — Robert Ford (CEO·CHAIR)
Cologuard Plus reimbursement and 2027 EPS
Q (Vijay Kumar · Evercore): Did reimbursement for next-gen Cologuard get cut, what is the blood test ASP, and should we expect double-digit EPS growth in 2027?
A: Management said Cologuard Plus is in an active CMS process and they find it hard to imagine the reimbursement rate would go down. They declined to disclose the blood test ASP for competitive reasons. On EPS for 2027, they would not give guidance now and said they will provide full targets in January, but affirmed there will be EPS growth and margin expansion.
"I find it very hard to imagine that when the process is done, that the reimbursement rate for Cologuard Plus would go down, and I'm just going to leave it at that." — Robert Ford (CEO·CHAIR)
Amulet 360 and IVL readouts and launches
Q (Travis Steed · BofA): What can you say about upcoming Amulet 360 and IVL pivotal data at TCT and how fast those products can launch and take share?
A: Management declined to preview the data and said they'll wait for investigators to present results, noting prior 45-day LAA data shown in January is a useful benchmark. They said they expect the coronary IVL filing timing in the first half (possibly earlier), will start a peripheral IVL trial by year end, and believe their Amulet 360 and IVL additions will help accelerate vascular growth and compete well.
"I think we showed 45-day data at the Boston meeting back in January, Travis, for our LAA device, and I think that's a good benchmark to have there." — Robert Ford (CEO·CHAIR)
CMS CGM for type 2 and M&A impact
Q (Joanne Wuensch · Citi): Will CMS cover CGM for non-intensive type 2 users, and does the Nutrition spin affect other strategic plans like M&A?
A: Management said clinical evidence supports CGM value for type 2 non-insulin patients but they will not forecast timing or embed it in guidance; when reimbursement happens it typically accelerates adoption and Abbott is preparing for that channel. On M&A, the spin does not restrict activity; Abbott expects a strong balance sheet, continued dividend growth, capacity for tuck-in deals, and focus on Exact integration while maintaining flexibility for buybacks and investments.
"What I can say is that the clinical data is significant." — Robert Ford (CEO·CHAIR)