Irvine-based heart valve maker Edwards Lifesciences Corp.’s shares fell sharply in after-hours trading today after it announced preliminary sales for the third quarter.
Shares of Edwards fell as much as 14% after closing down 1% in regular trading to a market value of $12 billion.
The company said it estimates its third-quarter sales will come in at $448 million, up 9% from a year ago but below previous guidance of $465 million to $485 million. It said that transcatheter heart valve sales were below expectations, with global revenue of $124 million, including domestic sales of $55 million.
Chief Executive Michael Mussallem said in a statement that overall procedure volumes for heart valves in Europe were tempered by austerity measures among governments there. He said that U.S. revenue from transcatheter valves was lower than expected due a lack of reimbursement for cases of patients who are deemed inoperable without femoral access.
Mussallem said he expects a regulation that will allow reimbursement for such patients in coming weeks.
