Shares of IDEXX Laboratories, Inc. (NASDAQ:IDXX), the leading provider of testing and diagnostics to veterinarians, gained after the company reported another quarter of strong financial results. We continue to believe that IDEXX’s business trends are improving and that its competitive position is becoming increasingly unassailable. The company’s placements of new diagnostic instruments in veterinary hospitals grew by almost 25% in its recent quarter. We expect this to be a key driver of future growth because these instruments require the ongoing purchase of high-margin consumables to perform in-clinic tests. In addition, the company’s network of domestic testing laboratories continued to grow at more than twice the rate of its main competitor. We believe that these trends, coupled with the revenue contributions from its new proprietary tests, has potential for better revenue and earnings growth during the next few years.
Baron Asset Fund second quarter shareholder letter.
