Baxter posts 20% jump in 1st-qtr profit

Shares in Baxter International rose 3.2% on April 16, after the US health care firm said that its first-quarter 2009 profit jumped 19.9%  year-on-year to $518.0 million, or $0.83 per share.

During the period, sales fell 2% to $2.82 billion. Analysts polled by  Thomson Reuters had predicted profit of $0.83 per share on revenues of  $2.87 billion.

According to the Illinois-based firm, its strong downturn-defying  performance was partly thanks to robust underlying fundamentals across  the portfolio and improved margins, driven by operational leverage and  favorable business and product mix.