Becton, Dickinson's fiscal first-quarter profit fell 17 percent on increased raw material costs, higher expenses and tough pricing comparisons.

The medical technology company cut its fiscal 2012 earnings from continuing operations outlook to account for a strengthening U.S. dollar.

Its stock fell $3.22, or 4 percent, to $77.31 in morning trading Tuesday. The shares are still up 11 percent from their 52-week low of $69.59. The stock peaked for the past year at $89.75 early last July.

Becton, Dickinson & Co. reported net income of $263 million, or $1.21 per share, for the three months ended Dec. 31, down from earnings of $315.9 million, or $1.36 per share, a year ago.

Analysts surveyed by FactSet expected earnings of $1.17 per share.
Revenue rose 3 percent to $1.89 billion from $1.84 billion, but the cost of products sold increased to $926.2 million from $865.4 million. Wall Street forecast revenue of $1.88 billion.

Revenue for the medical division climbed 2.6 percent to $950 million, while diagnostics segment revenue rose 3.2 percent to $621 million. Revenue for the biosciences unit edged up 0.9 percent to $317 million.

The company reported flat revenue in the U.S., citing tough pricing comparisons and a challenging research spending environment. But international revenue rose 4.5 percent to $1.06 billion on strength in emerging markets and strong safety-engineered products sales.

Total operating costs and expenses rose to $1.53 billion from $1.43 billion.
For fiscal 2012, Becton, Dickinson & Co. expects earnings from continuing operations between $5.60 and $5.70 per share. Its prior guidance called for earnings in a range of $5.75 to $5.85. Revenue is expected to be flat compared with a prior forecast for a 1 percent to 3 percent increase.

Analysts expect full-year earnings of $5.79 per share on revenue of $7.99 billion.