Ongoing issues with the global supply chain weighed down financial results at Philips for the fourth quarter of 2021, although the company said that orders in its Diagnosis & Treatment division grew at a double-digit rate.
Philips provided the update in a preview of financial results for the quarter, to be released on 24 January. The company said that it expected fourth-quarter sales for the entire company to be approximately 4.9 billion euros, down about 350 million euros compared with the company's original expectations.
The decline is mostly due to supply-chain issues, such as a shortage of electrical components and freight capacity, as well as the postponement of installations by customers, including at hospitals. The shortages and the company's recall of its Philips Respironics continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) device for people with sleep apnea conspired to reduce sales in the fourth quarter by 10% after currency adjustments compared with the same quarter the previous year. Full-year sales are expected to be 17.2 billion euros, down about 1% after currency adjustment.
On the positive side, the company said order intake for the fourth quarter was "robust," at 4%. Orders in its Diagnosis & Treatment division grew at a double-digit rate for the quarter.
