Smith & Nephew PLC - 3rd Quarter Results


London, UK--(Marketwire - November 1, 2007) - Smith & Nephew Q3 Results - continued revenue growth and margin improvement

1 November 2007

Smith & Nephew plc (LSE: SN, NYSE: SNN), the global medical technology business, announces its results for the third quarter ended 29 September 2007.

              3 months to 29 September 07     9 months to 29 September 07
              $m   underlying    reported     $m   underlying    reported
                     increase    increase/           increase    increase/
                            %  (decrease)%         increase %  (decrease)%

Revenue 1     845          10           24   2,402         11          20
Trading 
profit 2      169          19           28     484         18          25
EPS (cents)3  1.6           -          (84)   23.1          -         (64)
EPSA(cents)4 11.8           -           16    35.4          -          18

Business Unit 
Revenue 1
Orthopaedic     
-  Recon-
   struction  313          11           43     866         14          30
-  Trauma 
   & CT       156          11           21     442         15          20
Endoscopy     176           9           12     531         11          14
Advanced 
Wound 
Management    200           8           15     563          5          11


Q3 commentary

- Orthopaedic Reconstruction delivers above market global growth driven
  by hip revenues

- Orthopaedic Trauma  performance benefiting from excellent volume growth

- Endoscopy generates strong growth led by revenues outside the US which
  grew by 17%

- Advanced Wound Management sustains revenue growth momentum with
  improved performance both inside and outside the US

- Earnings Improvement Programme on target for continued margin
  improvement

- Integration of Plus Orthopedics and BlueSky progressing well

Commenting on the third quarter, David Illingworth, Chief Executive of Smith & Nephew, said:

"Despite market pressures in some areas, the third quarter has seen us deliver continued good revenue growth across the business, through our innovative product portfolio and the increased effectiveness of our sales force. Our focus on the high growth segments in our markets is bearing fruit and generating profitable growth.

We continue to identify good quality opportunities both internally and externally. We are changing our internal structure to increase our customer focus and operating effectiveness for the long term. The ongoing work on our Earnings Improvement Programme is building a solid platform for sustained margin improvement."

Analyst presentation

An analyst conference call to discuss the Company's third quarter results will be held at 12.30pm GMT/ 8.30am EST today, Thursday 1 November. This will be a live webcast on the Smith & Nephew website at http://www.smith-nephew.com. An on demand replay will be available shortly following the close of the call at http://www.smith-nephew.com/Q307. A podcast will also be available at the same address. If interested parties are unable to connect to the web, a listen-only service is available by calling +44 (0)20 7806 1955 in the UK or +1 718 354 1389 in the US. Analysts should contact Julie Allen on +44 (0)20 7960 2254 or by email at julie.allen@smith-nephew.com for conference details.

Notes

1   Unless otherwise specified as 'reported', all revenue increases
    throughout this document are underlying increases after adjusting for
    the effects of currency translation and acquisitions.  See note 3 to
    the financial statements for a reconciliation of these measures to
    results reported under IFRS.

2   Underlying increase in trading profit is the increase in trading
    profit after adjusting for the effects of currency translation and
    acquisitions.

3   The EPS for the nine months in the comparable period included 35.3
    cents from the gain on sale of BSN Medical.

4   EPSA growth is reported, not underlying, and is stated before
    restructuring and rationalisation costs, acquisition related costs,
    the legal settlement with the US Department of Justice, amortisation
    of acquisition intangibles and taxation thereon, and in 2006 the gain
    on the disposal of the joint venture and the related fair value
    adjustment.  See note 2 to the financial statements.

5   Percentage of new products to revenues is based on products launched
    within the last three years.

6   Comparisons are against restated numbers, see note 1 to the financial
    statements.


Enquiries

Investors
Adrian Hennah                                      +44 (0) 20 7401 7646
Chief Financial Officer
Smith & Nephew

Liz Hewitt                                         +44 (0) 20 7401 7646
Group Director Corporate Affairs
Smith & Nephew

Media
Jon Coles                                          +44 (0) 20 7404 5959
Justine McIlroy
Brunswick - London

Cindy Leggett-Flynn                                +1 (212) 333 3810
Brunswick - New York

To view the full text of this press release, click on the following link:

http://www.rns-pdf.londonstockexchange.com/rns/7891g_-2007-11-1.pdf

                    This information is provided by RNS
            The company news service from the London Stock Exchange