Fisher & Paykel Healthcare has kept a relatively conservative outlook for the year as it reported a 24 per cent lift in first-half profit.
Net profit rose to $121.2 million in the six months ended September 30 from $97.4m a year earlier. Revenue rose 12 per cent to $570.9m, as its hospital division lifted sales 19 per cent on strong demand for its Optiflow and Airvo systems.
"We saw strong demand across our hospital product portfolio, but in particular, for our Optiflow and Airvo systems, which continued to benefit from the growing body of clinical research in the use of nasal high flow therapy," chief executive Lewis Gradon said.t.
The breathing mask manufacturer affirmed annual guidance for profit to rise to between $255m and $265m on revenue of $1.19 billion. That was revised up in October after the company's Vitera mask received US regulatory approval earlier than anticipated, although some investors have noted that F&P Healthcare has typically adopted a cautious approach to providing guidance.
In the March 2019 year, the company posted record operating revenue of $1.07b, up 9 per cent. Net profit was up 10 per cent to a record $209m.