Danaher profit tops Street expectations

Net earnings rose to $612.9 million, or 86 cents per share, compared with $429.4 million, or 63 cents per share, a year earlier.

Earnings from continuing operations were 73 cents a share, beating the analysts' average estimate by 2 cents, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

Sales rose 31 percent to $4.32 billion, largely reflecting acquisitions. Sales in North America and in emerging markets improved, but were lower in Europe.

Washington-based Danaher completed its $5.8 billion purchase of medical diagnostics company Beckman Coulter in June, doubling the size of its life sciences and diagnostics division and pitting it against giants 3M Co and General Electric Co .

But margins in the life sciences business were lower due to deal costs.

This month, Danaher said it would pay $478.9 million before assumed debt for X-Rite , a provider of digital color management technology that competes with Japan's Konica-Minolta <4902.T>.

Danaher slightly raised its full-year profit forecast even as its second-quarter outlook came in below Wall Street estimates.

The company said it expected full-year earnings of $3.25 to $3.35 a share from continuing operations, compared with analysts' estimates of $3.30.

For the second quarter, Danaher forecast earnings of 76 cents to 81 cents a share, while Wall Street was expecting 82 cents.

(Reporting By Nick Zieminski in New York; Editing by Lisa Von Ahn)

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