Becton Dickinson profit slumps nearly 37% on delayed surgeries

(Reuters) – Medical technology company Becton Dickinson and Co on Thursday reported a 36.6% fall in quarterly profit, hurt by lower demand for its devices as people delayed non-urgent surgeries during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Net earnings attributable to the medical device maker was $286 million, or 97 cents per share, in the third quarter ended June 30, compared with a profit of $451 million, or $1.51 per share, last year.

Sales fell to $3.86 billion from $4.35 billion.

(Reporting By Dania Nadeem and Mrinalika Roy in Bengaluru; Editing by Shinjini Ganguli)