Danaher Corporation DHR is gaining from strength in its Biotechnology segment. The segment’s core revenues grew 7% on a year-over-year basis in the first quarter of 2026, supported by continued momentum in the bioprocessing business. On a geographical basis, the increase in core sales was driven by higher sales in Western Europe and China.
The bioprocessing business’ performance is supported by an increase in demand for consumables from large pharmaceutical customers. Also, solid demand from pharmaceutical customers for monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) has been buoying the bioprocessing business. In the first quarter of 2026, orders for bioprocessing equipment increased more than 30%. For 2026, Danaher expects core revenues from the bioprocessing business to increase in high single-digits on a year-over-year basis. Also, solid momentum in the medical filtration and research consumables business bodes well for the Biotechnology segment.
However, the Biotechnology segment is facing challenges owing to lower demand for medical filtration and research consumables in the discovery and medical business. Declining demand for equipment is also acting as a headwind for it.
Despite these challenges, Danaher anticipates core revenues from the Biotechnology segment to increase in mid-single digits on a year-over-year basis in the second quarter of 2026. An increase in demand for products within the bioprocessing business is expected to support stable segment performance in the coming quarters.
Segment Snapshot of DHR's Peers
Among its major peers, Labcorp Holdings Inc.’s LH Biopharma Laboratory Services segment generated net sales of $780.6 million in the first quarter of 2026, up 8.2% year over year. This was driven by Labcorp’s strong drug development capabilities and scientific expertise. Labcorp derived 22.1% of its total revenues from this segment during the quarter.
Its another peer, CVS Health Corporation’s CVS Health Services segment reported net sales of $48.24 billion in the first quarter of 2026, up 11% year over year. CVS Health generated 48% of its total sales from this segment in the quarter. Favorable pharmacy drug mix and brand inflation aided the segment’s results in the second quarter.
DHR's Price Performance, Valuation and Estimates
Shares of Danaher have gained 10.5% in the past month compared with the industry’s growth of 3.1%.
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From a valuation standpoint, DHR is trading at a forward price-to-earnings ratio of 21.03X, above the industry’s average of 15.04X.
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The Zacks Consensus Estimate for DHR’s 2026 earnings has increased over the past 60 days.
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The company currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).
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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).