Nov. 9, 2026
— Jeff Ward, Lehigh Valley News Briefs
OraSure Technologies reported a loss again and pushed back a forecast.
The third-quarter adjusted loss was $10.05 million, or 15 cents per share. Adjusted results exclude items the company considers to be one-time or unusual.
The south Bethlehem-based maker of home test kits and other devices has been losing money for years and the stock has been faltering since the COVID-19 epidemic ended.
The company today extended its forecast for cash flow from operations to reach break-even, now saying that will happen in the second half of 2027.
One of the company’s strong points has been cash on hand, but that is declining. Cash and cash equivalents were $148 million as of Sept. 30, down from $161 million on June 30.
Chief Executive Carrie Eglinton Manner put a positive spin on the quarter.
“Q3 was another solid quarter of execution in our return to growth,” she said. She discussed markets for the company’s Ebola virus test. There is an outbreak of the virus in the Democratic Republic of the Congo that has spread to two other countries.
The CEO also said she expects the Colli-Pee urine-collection kit to help OraSure’s “return to growth strategy.”
Revenue was $30.9 million, up from $27.1 million in the year-ago third quarter. The company forecasts fourth-quarter revenue of $30 million to $32 million, Chief Financial Officer Kenneth J. McGrath said.
Adjusted gross margin in the quarter was 45.9%, up from 44.2% in the year-ago period.
On a Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) basis, which do not allow the exclusion of one-time items, OraSure lost $13.1 million, or 19 cents per share, in the third quarter.
The closing price of shares today was $3.53. In the past 52 weeks, OraSure (NASDAQ:OSUR) has traded as high as $4.58 and as low as $2.08.
Zacks Investment Research, which provides information on corporate earnings, could find only one industry analyst estimate for OraSure. That was for a loss of 18 cents. With a market capitalization of about $244 million, not a lot of Wall Streeters are following the company.
The conference call will be posted on the company’s website.
OraSure was founded in 1987 as SolarCare, a maker of disposal sunscreen towelettes. Its product line includes OraQuick, a home test kit for HIV, and InteliSwab, a test for COVID-19.
Disclosure: I sometimes own stock in OraSure.
