Edwards Lifesciences Corp., the Irvine-based heart valve maker, said late Thursday that it expects double-digit earnings growth for 2007, driven by higher gross margins and new product sales.
Edwards said it expects its 2007 sales to come in at $1.08 billion to $1.13 billion, a wider range than Wall Street had expected.
2007’s gross profit margin could improve by 150 basis points, resulting in earnings growth of 12% to 14%, excluding charges.
On average, analysts were expecting Edwards to earn $132.6 million on sales of $1.11 billion in 2007.
The company reaffirmed its 2006 forecasts of $117.5 million to $118.7 million in profit on sales of $1.04 billion to $1.06 billion.
Wall Street expects the device maker to post a profit of $118.1 million on revenue of $1.04 billion this year.
