Illumina Posts $1.04B in Q1 2025 Revenue as CEO Jacob Thaysen Cautions on Weaker Full-Year Outlook Amid Tariff Pressures and China Headwinds

09 May 2025 | Friday | Company results

Despite solid earnings and 84% non-GAAP EPS at $0.97, Illumina cuts FY2025 guidance citing geopolitical uncertainty, $85M in tariff-related costs, and a projected (1%) to (3%) revenue decline in core business.


  • Core Illumina revenue of $1.04 billion for Q1 2025, down 1% from Q1 2024 (flat on a constant currency basis)
  • GAAP operating margin of 15.8% and non-GAAP operating margin of 20.4% for Q1 2025
  • GAAP diluted EPS of $0.82 and non-GAAP diluted EPS of $0.97 for Q1 2025
  • Cash provided by operations of $240 million and free cash flow of $208 million for Q1 2025
  • For fiscal year 2025, we expect:
    • Core Illumina revenue to decline between (1%) and (3%) on a constant currency basis year over year, down from low single digit growth previously
      • Revenue outside of the Greater China region expected to grow between 0% and 2% in 2025 on a constant currency basis year over year and includes our estimate reflecting changes in the research funding environment as well as the projected benefit from pricing actions
      • Reported revenue from the Greater China region expected to be $165 - $185 million in 2025 (with $72 million in revenue recognized in Q1 2025)
    • $85 million in tariff related costs which after actions is an approximate 125 bps reduction in fiscal year 2025 operating margin and $0.25 of EPS
    • Non-GAAP operating margin of approximately 21.5% - 22.0%, down from approximately 23% previously; and non-GAAP diluted EPS in the range of $4.20 - $4.30, a reduction from our March guidance of approximately $4.50, primarily due to the net impact of tariffs

 Illumina, Inc.  announced its financial results for the first quarter of fiscal year 2025.

"I'm proud that the Illumina team delivered strong Q1 revenue and EPS, a good start to the year in an increasingly dynamic business environment," said Jacob Thaysen, Chief Executive Officer. "Our outlook for the year has weakened due to shifting policy and geopolitical developments and we have taken swift incremental actions to protect our earnings. Our strategic focus remains on customer collaboration, driving differentiated innovations, and delivering on our long-term financial targets of growth and profitability."

First quarter Core Illumina segment results

 

GAAP

 

Non-GAAP (a)

Dollars in millions, except per share amounts

Q1 2025

 

Q1 2024

 

Q1 2025

 

Q1 2024

Revenue (b)

$  1,041

 

$  1,056

 

$  1,041

 

$  1,056

Gross margin (c)

65.6 %

 

65.7 %

 

67.4 %

 

67.1 %

Research and development (R&D) expense

$     252

 

$     241

 

$     241

 

$     237

Selling, general and administrative (SG&A) expense

$     267

 

$     336

 

$     248

 

$     254

Operating profit

$     164

 

$     116

 

$     212

 

$     218

Operating margin

15.8 %

 

11.0 %

 

20.4 %

 

20.6 %

Tax provision

$       51

 

$       45

 

$       44

 

$       54

Tax rate

27.9 %

 

39.3 %

 

22.0 %

 

25.7 %

Net income

$     131

 

$       70

 

$     154

 

$     155

Diluted EPS

$    0.82

 

$    0.44

 

$    0.97

 

$    0.98

   

(a)

See tables in "Results of Operations - Non-GAAP" section below for GAAP and non-GAAP reconciliations.

(b)

Revenue for Q1 2024 included intercompany revenue of $7 million prior to the spin-off of GRAIL.

(c)

Increase in gross margin was driven by execution of our operational excellence initiatives, that continue to deliver cost savings and improve productivity, and lower strategic partnership revenue that is lower margin, offset by lower product margins, primarily due to reduced pricing, and an increase in field service costs.

Capital expenditures for free cash flow purposes were $32 million for Q1 2025. Cash flow provided by operations was $240 million, compared to $284 million in the prior year period. Free cash flow (cash flow provided by operations less capital expenditures) was $208 million for the quarter, compared to $251 million in the prior year period. Depreciation and amortization expense was $69 million for Q1 2025. At the close of the quarter, the company held $1.24 billion in cash, cash equivalents and short-term investments.

Share repurchases for Q1 2025 were $200 million and the company intends to repurchase incremental shares over the course of the year as part of our ~$1.2 billion authorization remaining at the end of the quarter.

Key announcements since our last earnings release

  • Instituted an incremental $100 million cost reduction program to mitigate the impact of a range of potential scenarios for a reduction in revenue and related operating income from the company's Greater China business
  • Unveiled first-of-its-kind spatial transcriptomics technology; Broad Institute to collaborate on flagship project
  • Announced collaboration with Broad Clinical Labs to rapidly streamline and scale single-cell projects with cutting-edge tools and workflows
  • Unveiled a series of roadmap innovations spanning genomics, spatial transcriptomics, single cell analysis, CRISPR technologies, epigenetics, and data analytics software
  • Sequenced 250,000 whole genomes for the Alliance for Genomic Discovery (AGD) initiative
  • Announced partnership with Tempus to accelerate clinical adoption of next-generation sequencing tests through novel evidence generation
  • Dr. Scott Gottlieb elected as Board Chair, Keith Meister joined Board of Directors
  • Named for the sixth year in a row to the Dow Jones Best-in-Class World Index and the Dow Jones Best-in-Class North America Index

A full list of recent announcements can be found in the company's News Center.

Financial outlook and guidance
For fiscal year 2025, we expect:

    • Core Illumina revenue to decline between (1%) and (3%) on a constant currency basis year over year, down from low single digit growth previously
      • Revenue outside of the Greater China region expected to grow between 0% and 2% in 2025 on a constant currency basis year over year and includes our estimate reflecting changes in the research funding environment as well as the projected benefit from pricing actions
      • Reported revenue from the Greater China region expected to be $165 - $185 million in 2025 (with $72 million in revenue recognized in Q1 2025)
    • $85 million in tariff related costs which after actions is an approximate 125 bps reduction in fiscal year 2025 operating margin and $0.25 of EPS
    • Non-GAAP operating margin of approximately 21.5% - 22.0%, down from approximately 23% previously; and non-GAAP diluted EPS in the range of $4.20 - $4.30, a reduction from our March guidance of approximately $4.50, primarily due to the net impact of tariffs

The company provides forward-looking guidance on a non-GAAP basis, including on a constant currency basis for revenue and revenue growth rates. The company is unable to provide a reconciliation of forward-looking non-GAAP financial measures to the most directly comparable GAAP reported financial measures because it is unable to predict with reasonable certainty the impact of items such as acquisition-related expenses, fair value adjustments to contingent consideration, gains and losses from strategic investments, potential future asset impairments, restructuring activities, the ultimate outcome of pending litigation, and currency exchange rate fluctuations without unreasonable effort. These items are uncertain, inherently difficult to predict, depend on various factors, and could have a material impact on GAAP reported results for the guidance period. For the same reasons, the company is unable to address the significance of the unavailable information, which could be material to future results.

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