Alcon Inc. · ALC · FY2026 Q1 · Calendar Q2 2026
Alcon maintains 2026 outlook as Unity and dry-eye products drive growth
Alcon's Q1 showed product-led growth and a maintained outlook, but China, implantable competition, reimbursement and tariff exposure remain key tests.
Earnings scorecard
Reported versus consensusMarket reaction
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Transcript intelligence
What changed
Management highlighted Unity momentum, dry-eye growth and share gains, while revising tariff assumptions lower; guidance was maintained.
Guidance delta
Maintained: 5–7% constant-currency sales growth, 70–170 bps core operating-margin expansion and 10–13% EPS growth.
Key takeaways
- Q1 growth was led by Unity surgical equipment and the dry-eye portfolio.
- Management cited share gains in advanced-technology intraocular lenses and reusable contact lenses.
- China remained soft, while implantables faced competitive pressure.
- The outlook was maintained, with lower tariff assumptions described as a benefit.
Management priorities
- Drive adoption of Unity surgical platforms and other new products.
- Expand the dry-eye portfolio and payer coverage.
- Advance upcoming products, including UnityM, UnityDx, Vivity Pro and Orion.
- Use AI in research and development, manufacturing yield and commercial analytics.
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Try FN2 freeEarnings History
Analyst 52W Price Targets
Latest persisted target per named analyst; persisted current price from FN2's market snapshot as of Sep 28, 2026. Not an FN2 forecast.
Firm-level rating actions
FMP grade actions identify the grading firm, not a named analyst.
| Firm | Rating | Prior rating | Action | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Needham | Buy | Buy | Maintain | Sep 15, 2026 |
| Mizuho | Outperform | Outperform | Maintain | Aug 12, 2026 |
| JP Morgan | Neutral | Neutral | Maintain | Aug 12, 2026 |
| BTIG | Buy | Buy | Maintain | Aug 11, 2026 |
| Barclays | Equal Weight | Equal Weight | Maintain | May 8, 2026 |
| Wells Fargo | Overweight | Overweight | Maintain | May 7, 2026 |
| Baird | Outperform | Outperform | Maintain | May 7, 2026 |
| Stifel | Hold | Hold | Maintain | Mar 9, 2026 |
| B of A Securities | Underperform | Buy | Downgrade | Dec 11, 2025 |
| Keybanc | Overweight | Overweight | Maintain | Oct 21, 2025 |
| Morgan Stanley | Equal Weight | Equal Weight | Maintain | Aug 21, 2025 |
| Redburn Atlantic | Neutral | Sell | Upgrade | Oct 10, 2024 |
| RBC Capital | Outperform | Sector Perform | Upgrade | Sep 10, 2024 |
| Oppenheimer | Outperform | Outperform | Maintain | Aug 22, 2024 |
| Jefferies | Buy | Buy | Maintain | May 14, 2024 |
| Argus Research | Buy | Buy | Maintain | Mar 4, 2024 |
| Bernstein | Outperform | Outperform | Maintain | Feb 29, 2024 |
| Societe Generale | Sell | Hold | Downgrade | Nov 17, 2022 |
| Citigroup | Neutral | Neutral | Maintain | Nov 17, 2022 |
| Stephens & Co. | Overweight | Equal Weight | Upgrade | May 12, 2022 |
| Credit Suisse | Outperform | Outperform | Maintain | Feb 17, 2022 |
| SVB Leerink | Market Perform | Market Perform | Maintain | Aug 19, 2021 |
| UBS | Buy | Neutral | Upgrade | Mar 13, 2020 |
| Bank of America | Neutral | Neutral | Maintain | Aug 21, 2019 |
| BMO Capital | Perform | Market Perform | Maintain | Apr 18, 2019 |
| Berenberg | Hold | Hold | Maintain | Apr 10, 2019 |
Named analyst price targets
Upside is calculated against the persisted current price $64.77. FMP does not supply a rating on these named-analyst rows.
| Firm | Analyst | 52W target | Price when posted | Upside | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jefferies | Michael Sarcone | $85 | $65.34 | +31.2% | Sep 22, 2026 |
| BNP Paribas | Analyst unavailable | $79 | $73.58 | +22.0% | Aug 13, 2026 |
| UBS | Analyst unavailable | $35 | $72.87 | -46.0% | Aug 12, 2026 |
| Mizuho Securities | Steve Lichtman | $85 | $75.35 | +31.2% | Aug 12, 2026 |
| BTIG | Ryan Zimmerman | $82 | $75.22 | +26.6% | Aug 11, 2026 |
| Mizuho Securities | Analyst unavailable | $80 | $66.86 | +23.5% | Jul 15, 2026 |
| Argus Research | Analyst unavailable | $85 | $68.7 | +31.2% | Jul 2, 2026 |
| Barclays | Analyst unavailable | $78 | $63.88 | +20.4% | May 8, 2026 |
| Stifel Nicolaus | Analyst unavailable | $70 | $65.5 | +8.1% | May 6, 2026 |
| Stifel Nicolaus | Analyst unavailable | $82 | $81.85 | +26.6% | Mar 9, 2026 |
| Wells Fargo | Larry Biegelsen | $97 | $86.27 | +49.8% | Feb 26, 2026 |
| Stifel Nicolaus | Analyst unavailable | $80 | $80.62 | +23.5% | Jan 9, 2026 |
| Bernstein | Susannah Ludwig | $101.09 | $77.67 | +56.1% | Nov 14, 2025 |
| KeyBanc | Analyst unavailable | $91 | $75.46 | +40.5% | Oct 21, 2025 |
| UBS | Analyst unavailable | $91 | $72.05 | +40.5% | Oct 13, 2025 |
| Barclays | Matt Miksic | $86 | $72.05 | +32.8% | Oct 13, 2025 |
| Stifel Nicolaus | Thomas Stephan | $85 | $73.92 | +31.2% | Sep 29, 2025 |
| BTIG | Ryan Zimmerman | $100 | $87.49 | +54.4% | Jul 14, 2025 |
| KeyBanc | Brett Fishbin | $107 | $97.59 | +65.2% | Oct 15, 2024 |
| Oppenheimer | Steven Lichtman | $110 | $95.56 | +69.8% | Aug 22, 2024 |
| Morgan Stanley | Patrick Wood | $85 | $89.96 | +31.2% | Jul 15, 2024 |
| Mizuho Securities | Anthony Petrone | $105 | $89.97 | +62.1% | May 16, 2024 |
| Oppenheimer | Steve Lichtman | $103 | $89.28 | +59.0% | May 15, 2024 |
| Robert W. Baird | Jeff Johnson | $104 | $89.28 | +60.6% | May 15, 2024 |
| Wells Fargo | Larry Biegelsen | $94 | $89.28 | +45.1% | May 15, 2024 |
| Stifel Nicolaus | Tom Stephan | $100 | $89.28 | +54.4% | May 14, 2024 |
| Jefferies | Anthony Petrone | $105 | $89.28 | +62.1% | May 14, 2024 |
| KeyBanc | Brett Fishbin | $96 | $89.28 | +48.2% | May 14, 2024 |
| Needham | David Saxon | $101 | $88.99 | +55.9% | May 14, 2024 |
| BTIG | Ryan Zimmerman | $92 | $88.96 | +42.0% | May 14, 2024 |
| Goldman Sachs | Richard Felton | $100 | $82.68 | +54.4% | Apr 10, 2024 |
| Bernstein | Susannah Ludwig | $76 | $76.88 | +17.3% | Jan 23, 2024 |
| Robert W. Baird | Jeff Johnson | $90 | $74.31 | +39.0% | May 10, 2023 |
| BTIG | Analyst unavailable | $78 | $67.91 | +20.4% | Dec 21, 2022 |
| Citigroup | Analyst unavailable | $69 | $66.33 | +6.5% | Nov 17, 2022 |
| Argus Research | John Staszak | $78 | $66.4 | +20.4% | Jun 23, 2022 |
| Stephens | Chris Cooley | $86 | $77.17 | +32.8% | Jan 23, 2022 |
| Goldman Sachs | Veronika Dubajova | $94.08 | $78.4 | +45.3% | Nov 30, 2021 |
| Berenberg Bank | Scott Bardo | $96.22 | $83.53 | +48.6% | Nov 17, 2021 |
| Citigroup | Joanne Wuensch | $87 | $81.46 | +34.3% | Nov 11, 2021 |
| Deutsche Bank | Falko Friedrichs | $90.87 | $82.64 | +40.3% | Nov 10, 2021 |
| Argus Research | John Staszak | $88 | $78.5 | +35.9% | Oct 8, 2021 |
| Wells Fargo | Larry Biegelsen | $93 | $83.95 | +43.6% | Sep 13, 2021 |
| UBS | Michael Leuchten | $90.87 | $80.69 | +40.3% | Aug 23, 2021 |
| Societe Generale | Delphine Le Louet | $82.85 | $80.71 | +27.9% | Aug 20, 2021 |
| Leerink Partners | Richard Newitter | $82 | $71.36 | +26.6% | Aug 17, 2021 |
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Start freeCompany context
Snapshot as of publicationAlcon Inc. researches, develops, manufactures, distributes, and sells eye care products worldwide. The company operates through two segments, Surgical and Vision Care. It offers equipment, instrumentation and diagnostics, intraocular lenses (IOLs), and other implantables; and consumables, including viscoelastics, surgical solutions, incisional instruments, surgical custom packs, and other products for surgical procedures. The company’s cataract products include Unity CS, LenSx laser system, Verion reference unit and Verion digital marker, ARGOS biometer, SMARTCATARACT health platform, NGENUITY 3D visualization system, LuxOR surgical ophthalmic microscope, and ORA system for intra-operative measurements; ADI cloud-based platform; and implantable products, including monofocal, Toric, and Presbyopia-Correcting IOLs, as well as delivery systems, such as…
Historical context
All ALC earningsHealthcare peers this season
Latest reports in the same sector| Company | Quarter | EPS surprise | Market move | Headline |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| COO The Cooper Companies, Inc. | FY2026 Q3 · Calendar Q3 2026 | +2.7% | -14.7% | CooperCompanies beats expectations as inventory reduction weighs on vision revenue |
| MDT Medtronic plc | FY2027 Q1 · Calendar Q3 2026 | +4.3% | +1.5% | Medtronic raises FY27 outlook as growth broadens across platforms |
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Sources
- Earnings call transcript and parsed analysis · 2026-05-11T10:29:34.698584+00:00
- FN2 earnings calendar · 2026-07-26T00:37:12.209961+00:00
- Polygon adjusted daily market bars · 2026-09-28T15:01:05.740828+00:00
- Financial Modeling Prep analyst price-target consensus and quote snapshot · 2026-09-28T15:01:05.738056+00:00
Methodology
Reported and consensus figures come from FN2's earnings event records. Market reaction and volume are calculated from daily adjusted bars around the event; abnormal move subtracts the SPY move over the same window.
Analyst target low, average, and high values are derived at request time from each named analyst's latest persisted FMP target. The current-price marker comes from FN2's persisted market snapshot. They are sell-side estimates, not an FN2 valuation or recommendation.
Transcript intelligence is a structured synthesis of the current and prior earnings-call analyses. Missing values stay missing and are never estimated.
By FN2 Research · Updated · As of 2026-09-28. For educational purposes only; not investment advice.