Why Patterson Companies Stock Is Falling Today

Actions of Patterson Companies (PDCO -14.56%) were down 15.1% as of 11:09 a.m. ET Wednesday. The steep decline came after the dental and animal health company announced its fiscal first quarter 2025 results before the market opened.

Patterson reported revenue of $1.54 billion in the first quarter, down 2.2% year over year. The average estimate among analysts polled by LSEG it was for revenue of $1.59 billion.

The company posted first-quarter earnings of $0.15 per share on a generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) basis. Its adjusted earnings per share were $0.24, well below the consensus estimate of $0.32.

What’s behind Patterson’s disappointing numbers?

Patterson Companies CEO Don Zurbay blamed the disappointing first quarter fiscal 2025 results primarily on “a greater than anticipated impact of the Change Healthcare cybersecurity attack.” In February 2024, a cyber attack on Change Healthcare, a subsidiary of UnitedHealth Groupcrippled his systems. This created a backlog of unpaid claims that caused problems for many healthcare companies.

But this was not Patterson’s only difficulty. Zurbay also said the company’s pet business saw lower sales. In particular, consumables sales were down 3% year-over-year, and equipment sales were down 3.8%. Zurbay noted that “the timing of certain corporate expenses” also contributed to Patterson’s lower-than-expected results.

Buying Patterson Companies Stock on Sale?

Despite the disappointing first-quarter results, Patterson reaffirmed its full-year earnings guidance. The stock is cheap, with a forward price-to-earnings ratio of just 10.8. Patterson’s forward dividend yield exceeds 4%. I think the big sale of Patterson Companies makes the stock an even better choice for value and income investors.