Tandem Diabetes Care Inc. shares plummeted more than 20% after the company reported earnings Wednesday, continuing a decline that has already cost the company two-thirds of its market value this year and has been partially blamed on the inability of many Americans to afford the potentially life-saving technology.
“Our data suggests that this dynamic began impacting new customers’ decision to purchase the pump beginning in the second quarter. This is primarily a factor in the U.S., as outside the United States, it’s mitigated by the predominance of government healthcare plans,” he said at the time. The problems have landed on Tandem’s revenue growth rates and forecasts. In Wednesday’s third-quarter results, Tandem reported that sales grew to $205.1 million from $179.6 million, missing analysts’ average estimate of $207.6 million, according to FactSet. Analysts had already shed about $10 million from that estimate after disappointing results last quarter.
Tandem’s forecast suggests that executives expect the U.S. to account for nearly 75% of its sales this year. Executives hope to find more business outside the U.S. as well, launching the business in Israel and Portugal in the third quarter, which Sheridan said brings the number of countries in which Tandem sells its t:slim X2 device to 25.