Covidien Ltd. (NYSE:COV) will unveil its latest earnings on Thursday, January 26, 2012. The average estimate of analysts is for net income of $1.03 per share, a rise of 8.4% from the company’s actual earnings for the same quarter a year ago. During the past three months, the average estimate has moved down from $1.04. Between one and three months ago, the average estimate was unchanged. It has since dropped over the last month. Analysts are projecting profit to rise by 7.6% versus last year to $4.27.

The company has beaten estimates the last four quarters and is coming off a quarter where it topped forecasts by 3 cents, reporting profit of $1.08 per share against a mean estimate of net income of $1.05 per share. On average, analysts predict $2.92 billion in revenue this quarter, a rise of 5.4% from the year ago quarter. Analysts are forecasting total revenue of $11.89 billion for the year, a rise of 2.8% from last year’s revenue of $11.57 billion.

Competitors to Watch: C.R. Bard, Inc. (NYSE:BCR), Teleflex Incorporated (NYSE:TFX), Becton, Dickinson and Co. (NYSE:BDX), Baxter International Inc. (NYSE:BAX), Angiotech Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:ANPI), CareFusion Corporation (NYSE:CFN), CONMED Corporation (NASDAQ:CNMD), AngioDynamics, Inc. (NASDAQ:ANGO), and Masimo Corporation (NASDAQ:MASI).

AmerisourceBergen Corp. (NYSE:ABC) will unveil its latest earnings on Thursday, January 26, 2012. The average estimate of analysts is for net income of 62 cents per share, a rise of 8.8% from the company’s actual earnings for the same quarter a year ago. During the past three months, the average estimate has moved up from 61 cents. Between one and three months ago, the average estimate moved up. It has been unchanged at 62 cents during the last month. For the year, analysts are projecting profit of $2.82 per share, a rise of 10.6% from last year.

Last quarter, the company beat estimates by 4 cents, coming in at net income of 60 cents a share versus the estimate of profit of 56 cents a share. It marked the fourth straight quarter of beating estimates. Analysts are projecting a rise of 0.5% in revenue from the year-earlier quarter to $19.99 billion.

Competitors to Watch: McKesson Corporation (NYSE:MCK), Cardinal Health, Inc. (NYSE:CAH), Henry Schein, Inc. (NASDAQ:HSIC), Omnicare, Inc. (NYSE:OCR), BioScrip Inc. (NASDAQ:BIOS), Grupo Casa Saba, S.A. (NYSE:SAB), Owens & Minor, Inc. (NYSE:OMI), Patterson Companies, Inc. (NASDAQ:PDCO), PSS World Medical, Inc. (NASDAQ:PSSI), and MWI Veterinary Supply, Inc. (NASDAQ:MWIV).

To contact the reporter on this story: Derek Hoffman at staff.writers@wallstcheatsheet.com

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Damien Hoffman at editors@wallstcheatsheet.com

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