Tandem Diabetis Up Friday On Surprising Q3 Revenue Outlook

Tandem Diabetes Care Inc.

bucked a down market to gain 16 percent Friday on a strong third-quarter revenue outlook. The insulin pump-maker's revenues soared 86 percent in the second quarter and it predicted revenue for the current period of $48 million to $54 million, compared with Wall Street's forecast of $13.75 million. But even with Friday's share-price gain, the insulin pump-maker is down nearly 44 percent in the year to date.The company held a $120 million public offering in November, when shares first sold at $15. Along with its sales growth, Tandem's second-quarter gross margin widened to 34 percent from 7 percent for the same period of 2013. In a conference call, Chief Financial Officer John Cajigas said the recent margin improvement "isn't a surprise, given the volume we're doing." Cajigas said the company has targeted a gross margin of 60 percent for the long term, but expects the number to be "choppy" in the near term. Tandem developed an insulin pump cleared for marketing in 2011 which it says is an alternative to multiple daily injections of insulin. Although pump designs have been around for decades, improved pumps from several manufacturers have seen recently growing acceptance by doctors and patients. Tandem traded recently at $14.54, up 16.4 percent.