IDEXX Laboratories, Inc. (IDEXX) develops, manufactures, and distributes products, as well as provides services primarily for the companion animal veterinary, livestock and poultry, dairy, and water testing industries.
The company also provides human medical point-of-care and laboratory diagnostics. The primary products and services offered by the company is: point-of-care veterinary diagnostic products, composed of instruments, consumables, and rapid assay test kits; veterinary reference labor...
IDEXX Laboratories, Inc. (IDEXX) develops, manufactures, and distributes products, as well as provides services primarily for the companion animal veterinary, livestock and poultry, dairy, and water testing industries.
The company also provides human medical point-of-care and laboratory diagnostics. The primary products and services offered by the company is: point-of-care veterinary diagnostic products, composed of instruments, consumables, and rapid assay test kits; veterinary reference laboratory diagnostic and consulting services; practice management and diagnostic imaging systems and services used by veterinarians; health monitoring, biological materials testing, laboratory diagnostic instruments, and services used by the biomedical research community; diagnostic and health-monitoring products for livestock, poultry, and dairy; products that test water for certain microbiological contaminants; and point-of-care electrolytes and blood gas analyzers.
Segment
The company operates primarily through three business segments: Companion Animal Group, Water quality products, and Livestock, Poultry and Dairy. The Other operating segment combines and presents the company’s human medical diagnostic products business with its out-licensing arrangements.
Companion Animal Group segment
Companion Animal Group (‘CAG’) - Diagnostic and information management-based products and services for the companion animal veterinary industry, including in-clinic diagnostic solutions, outside reference laboratory services, and veterinary software and services.
CAG Diagnostics
The company provides diagnostic capabilities that meet veterinarians’ diverse needs through a variety of modalities, including in-clinic diagnostic solutions and outside reference laboratory services. Regardless of the modality utilized, veterinarians are provided with clinically relevant data, which is integrated within the company’s information management technologies. The result is a comprehensive view of patient diagnostic information that is easily accessible by both the veterinarian and pet owner.
In-Clinic Diagnostic Solutions: The company’s in-clinic diagnostic solutions comprise the IDEXX VetLab suite of in-clinic chemistry, hematology, immunoassay, electrolyte, urinalysis, cytology, blood gas, and coagulation analyzers, as well as associated consumable products that provide real-time reference lab quality diagnostic results. Several of these in-clinic analyzers, including the Catalyst One Chemistry analyzer, ProCyte One hematology analyzer, SediVue Dx Analyzer, and IDEXX inVue Dx Cellular Analyzer, utilize proprietary artificial intelligence (‘AI’) capabilities in their image capture systems to analyze samples. IDEXX in-clinic analyzers feature load-and-go sample handling and integration with a cloud-enabled software ecosystem, including the IDEXX VetLab Station and VetConnect PLUS. The company’s in-clinic diagnostic solutions also include a broad range of single-use, IDEXX SNAP rapid assay test kits that provide quick, accurate, and convenient point-of-care diagnostic test results for a variety of companion animal disease-causing pathogens and health conditions. Additionally, the company offers extended maintenance agreements in connection with the sale of its instruments.
Blood and Urine Chemistry: The company’s blood and urine chemistry analyzers are used by veterinarians to measure levels of certain enzymes and other substances in blood or urine for monitoring health status and assisting in diagnosing physiologic conditions. The company actively sells the Catalyst One Chemistry Analyzer and continues to support the Catalyst Dx Analyzer, both of which perform chemistry, immunoassay, and electrolyte tests. The company also supports the VetStat Electrolyte and Blood Gas analyzer: Sales of consumables to customers who use the company’s chemistry analyzers provide the majority of its instrument consumables revenues from its installed base of IDEXX VetLab instruments.
Hematology: The company’s hematology analyzers assess the cellular components of blood, including red blood cells, white blood cells, and platelets (also called a complete blood count). These analyzers include the ProCyte One and ProCyte Dx hematology analyzers. The company also sells the Coag Dx Analyzer, which permits the detection and diagnosis of blood clotting disorders. The company continues to offer consumables to support analyzers that are not actively marketed, including the LaserCyte Dx Hematology Analyzer.
Urinalysis: The SediVue Dx Analyzer provides a complete urine sediment analysis. This platform features proprietary AI capabilities. The IDEXX VetLab UA Analyzer provides rapid, automated capture of semi-quantitative chemical urinalysis from IDEXX UA strips and is validated specifically for veterinary use.
Cytology: During the fourth quarter of 2024, the company launched in North America its new cellular analyzer, IDEXX inVue Dx, which detects common cytologic changes found in blood. The IDEXX inVue Dx Cellular Analyzer uses advanced optics and AI technology in a slide-free, load-and-go platform.
Rapid Assay: The SNAP rapid assays are single-use, handheld test kits. This device improves medical care by allowing veterinarians to share the test results with the pet owner on the SNAP Pro Analyzer screen, or via VetConnect PLUS. The principal canine SNAP rapid assay tests include SNAP 4Dx Plus, which tests for the seven vector-borne diseases causing pathogens, including Lyme disease, as well as canine heartworm, and SNAP Heartworm RT, which tests for heartworm. Sales of the company’s canine vector-borne disease tests are typically greater in the first half of its fiscal year due to seasonality of disease testing in the veterinary practices in the Northern Hemisphere. The principal feline SNAP rapid assay tests include SNAP Feline Triple, which tests for feline immunodeficiency virus (‘FIV’) (which is similar to the virus that leads to AIDS in humans), feline leukemia virus (‘FeLV’), and heartworm, and SNAP FIV/FeLV Combo Test, which tests for FIV and FeLV.
IDEXX VetLab Station: The IDEXX VetLab Station (‘IVLS’) connects and integrates the diagnostic information from all the IDEXX VetLab analyzers, and thus provides reference laboratory information management system capability. IVLS also sends all results created on connected instruments instantly to VetConnect PLUS. The company sells IVLS as an integral component for its in-clinic analyzer suite. In 2024, the company upgraded its IVLS to work easier and faster than its previous version, providing two times faster performance on common workflows and access to historical results five times faster.
Integrated Diagnostic Information Management: VetConnect PLUS is a cloud-based technology that enables veterinarians to access and analyze patients’ data from all of IDEXX’s diagnostic modalities. These integrated diagnostic results provide the veterinarian with a visualization of patient-specific information, allowing the veterinarian to easily see and trend diagnostic results, enabling greater medical insight and enhanced decision-making through IDEXX DecisionIQ, an analytical tool incorporated in VetConnect PLUS that utilizes proprietary technology, including AI, to aid practitioners in making medical diagnoses. In addition, VetConnect PLUS provides instant mobile or browser-based access to results.
Reference Laboratory Diagnostic and Consulting Services: The company offers commercial reference laboratory diagnostic and consulting services to veterinarians in many developed geographies worldwide, including customers in the U.S., Europe, Canada, Australia, Japan, New Zealand, South Africa, and South Korea, through a network of approximately 80 laboratories. Customers use the company’s services by submitting samples by courier or overnight delivery to one of its facilities. Most test results have same-day or next-day turnaround times. The company’s diagnostic laboratory business also provides health monitoring and diagnostic testing services to biomedical research customers in North America, Europe, and Asia.
The company’s reference laboratories offer a selection of tests and diagnostic panels to detect a number of disease states and other conditions in animals, including all tests. This menu of tests also includes a number of specialized tests that the company has developed that allow practitioners to diagnose increasingly relevant diseases and conditions in dogs and cats, including parasites, heart disease, allergies, pancreatitis, diabetes, renal disease, and infectious diseases. The company also offers cancer screening to aid in diagnosis, assist in therapy selection, and support therapy management and monitoring.
IDEXX Telemedicine: Additionally, the company provides specialized veterinary consultation, telemedicine, and advisory services, including radiology, dental radiography, cardiology, internal medicine, and ultrasound consulting. These services enable veterinarians to obtain diagnostic interpretations, as well as radiology and cardiology assessments. IDEXX Telemedicine services are accessed through IDEXX VetMedStat, a cloud-based software platform for case submission and interpretation that embeds proprietary AI capabilities aiding analysis of images and electrocardiogram results.
Veterinary Software and Services & Diagnostic Imaging Systems
Veterinary Software and Services: The company develops, markets, and sells a portfolio of software and services for independent veterinary clinics and corporate groups. This portfolio includes:
Practice management systems: The company provides software, hardware, and integrated services that run key functions of veterinary clinics, including managing patient electronic health records, scheduling, client communication, billing, and inventory management. The company’s practice management systems offerings include cloud-based ezyVet, Animana, and IDEXX Neo, and on-premises Cornerstone. To support the software system needs of practices, IDEXX provides integrated services, including Payment Solutions, Data Backup & Recovery, and Practice Supplies.
Third-party integrations strengthen the company’s practice management systems value proposition by improving user workflows. The company’s commercial application programming interfaces and partner management processes allow controlled access to the practice management systems platform while providing an enhanced user experience. The practice management systems installed base provides access to veterinary channel transaction activity, enabling a syndicated data offering. Industry pharmaceutical and nutrition partners leverage the company’s data to understand channel market performance and to provide behavioral insights.
Software applications that extend workflow capabilities for practices and groups. The company is able to improve overall patient management and workflow optimization through coordination and tracking of every step of a patient during a hospital stay. The SmartFlow cloud offering works in conjunction with major veterinary practice management systems, including ezyVet, Cornerstone, Animana, IDEXX Neo, and certain third-party practice management systems, and VetRadar provides workflow capability for ezyVet.
Client marketing and wellness plan management: In addition, the company offers cloud-based client communication (Pet Health Network Pro, Pet Health Network 3D, and Vello) and preventive care plan management software (Petly Plans) designed to strengthen the relationship between the veterinarian and the pet owner. To support the communication needs between general practices and specialty referral practices, IDEXX offers rVetLink software. Lastly, IDEXX Enterprise provides centralized management and reporting capabilities for groups of veterinary practices.
Diagnostic Imaging Systems: The company’s diagnostic imaging systems capture radiographic images in digital form, replacing traditional x-ray film and the film development process, which generally requires the use of hazardous chemicals and darkrooms. The company markets and sells two diagnostic imaging systems primarily used in small animal veterinary applications: IDEXX ImageVue DR50 and IDEXX ImageVue DR30.
The company’s diagnostic imaging systems employ picture archiving and communication system (‘PACS’) software called IDEXX-PACS, which facilitates radiographic image capture and review. IDEXX Web PACS is the company’s cloud-based software-as-a-service (‘SaaS’) offering for viewing, accessing, storing, and sharing multi-modality diagnostic images. IDEXX Web PACS is integrated with Cornerstone, ezyVet, IDEXX Neo, and IDEXX VetConnect PLUS to provide centralized access to diagnostic imaging results alongside patient diagnostic results from any internet-connected device. IDEXX Web PACS uses proprietary AI capabilities to enable optimal sharing, analysis, and storage of diagnostic images.
Water quality products (‘Water’) segment
Water provides innovative testing solutions for easy, rapid, and accurate detection and quantification of various microbiological parameters in water.
Water testing: The company’s principal products are the Colilert, Colilert-18, and Colisure tests, which detect the presence of total coliforms and E. coli in water. These organisms are broadly used as microbial indicators for potential fecal contamination in water. The company’s products utilize nutrient-indicators that produce a change in color or fluorescence when metabolized by target microbes in the sample. The company’s water tests are used by government laboratories, water utilities, and private certified laboratories to test drinking water in compliance with regulatory standards, including the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (‘EPA’) standards. The tests are also used in evaluating water used in production processes (for example, in beverage and pharmaceutical applications), as well as in evaluating bottled water, recreational water, wastewater, and water from private wells. The company also sells consumables, parts, and accessories to be used with many of its water testing products. IDEXX also offers the following products:
Enterolert: The company’s Enterolert products detect the presence of enterococci in drinking, waste, and recreational waters. Enterococci, bacteria normally found in human and animal waste, are organisms broadly used as microbial indicators for potential fecal contamination in water.
Pseudalert: The company’s Pseudalert products detect the presence of Pseudomonas aeruginosa in pool, spa, and bottled water. Pseudomonas aeruginosa is a pathogen.
Filta-Max and Filta-Max xpress: The company’s Filta-Max and Filta-Max xpress products are used in the detection of Cryptosporidium and Giardia in water. Cryptosporidium and Giardia are parasites. The company also distributes certain water testing kits manufactured by Thermo Fisher Scientific, Inc., that complement its Cryptosporidium and Giardia testing products.
Legiolert: The company’s Legiolert product is a simple culture method test for the detection of Legionella pneumophila, the most common Legionella species in water and the primary cause of Legionnaires’ disease. The Legiolert test is designed to be used on potable or non-potable water sources, with results in seven days.
Quanti-Tray products: The company’s Quanti-Tray products, when used in conjunction with the Colilert, Colilert-18, Colisure, Enterolert, Pseudalert, Heterotrophic Plate Count (‘HPC’) or Legiolert products, provide users quantitative measurements of microbial contamination rather than a presence/absence indication. The company’s Quanti-Tray Sealer PLUS and Quanti-Tray Sealer 2X are used with the Quanti-Tray products for the determination of bacterial density in water samples. The company’s SimPlate and EasyDisc for HPC products detect the total number of the most common bacteria in a water sample.
IDEXX Tecta Systems: The IDEXX Tecta system instruments automate several steps in water testing workflows, allowing multiple samples to be tested simultaneously, with remote notification capability. Tecta detects total coliforms and E. coli, E. coli only, fecal coliforms, and enterococci.
Livestock, Poultry and Dairy (‘LPD’) segment
LPD provides diagnostic tests, services, and related instrumentation that are used to manage the health status of livestock and poultry, to improve producer efficiency, and to ensure the quality and safety of milk.
Livestock, Poultry, Herd Health Screening and Production Management. The company’s livestock and poultry diagnostic products are purchased by government and private laboratories that provide testing services to livestock veterinarians, producers, and processors, and also directly by livestock veterinarians and producers. The principal livestock and poultry diagnostic products offered by the company include tests for Bovine Viral Diarrhea Virus (‘BVDV’), Porcine Reproductive and Respiratory Syndrome (‘PRRS’), Transmittable Spongiform Encephalopathies (‘TSE’), and African Swine Fever (‘ASFV’). BVDV is a common and contagious viral infection that suppresses the immune system, making the animal susceptible to a host of other infections, and impacting beef and dairy production yields as a result. PRRS is a contagious virus causing reproductive problems and respiratory diseases in swine, leading to increased piglet mortality, reduced growth, and vulnerability to secondary infections. TSE is a transmissible disease in which infected animals exhibit behavioral disturbances and a progressive loss of physical condition that precedes death. The company’s RealPCR ASFV Test is a real-time polymerase chain reaction (‘PCR’) assay that provides early and accurate detection of ASFV supporting prevention, control, and eradication programs by veterinarians and producers. The company also sells its Alertys Milk Pregnancy Test, Alertys Ruminant Pregnancy Test, Alertys On-Farm Pregnancy Test, and Rapid Visual Pregnancy Test for cattle and other ruminants. The company also offers herd health screening services to livestock veterinarians and producers.
Dairy products: The company’s principal dairy products use the SNAP test platform and are used by dairy producers and processors worldwide to detect antibiotic drug residue in milk. The primary product lines offered by the company is SNAP Beta-Lactam ST and SNAPduo ST Plus, which detect certain beta-lactam and tetracycline antibiotic residues.
Other - The Other operating segment combines and presents the company’s human medical diagnostic products and services business (‘OPTI Medical’) with its out-licensing arrangements because they do not meet the quantitative or qualitative thresholds for reportable segments.
OPTI Medical: Through OPTI Medical, the company sells point-of-care analyzers and related consumables for use in human medical hospitals and clinics to measure electrolytes, blood gases, acid-base balance, glucose, lactate, blood urea nitrogen, and ionized calcium, and to calculate other parameters, such as base excess and anion gap. These OPTI analyzers are used primarily in emergency rooms, operating rooms, cardiac monitoring areas, and other locations where time-critical diagnostic testing is performed within the hospital setting. The OPTI CCA-TS2 Analyzer runs whole blood, plasma, and serum samples on single-use disposable cassettes that contain various configurations of analytes.
Other Activities: The company owns certain drug delivery technology intellectual property, that it continues to seek to commercialize through agreements with third parties, such as pharmaceutical companies, which are included in the Other segment.
Marketing and Distribution
The company markets, sells, and services its products worldwide through its marketing, customer service, sales, and technical service groups, as well as through independent distributors and other resellers. The company maintains a sales presence in the U.S. and in major regions worldwide, including Africa, Asia Pacific, Canada, Europe, and Latin America.
Generally, the company selects the appropriate distribution channel for its products based on the type of product, technical service requirements, number and concentration of customers, regulatory requirements, and other factors. The company markets its companion animal diagnostic products to veterinarians directly in the U.S. Outside the U.S., the company sells its companion animal diagnostic products through its direct sales force and, in certain countries, through distributors and other resellers. The company sells its veterinary reference laboratory diagnostic and consulting services worldwide, generally through its direct sales force. The company markets its diagnostic imaging products primarily through its direct sales force in the U.S. and Canada. The company markets its software products primarily through its direct sales force in the U.S., Canada, Europe, and Australia. The company markets its Water and LPD products primarily through its direct sales force in the U.S. and Canada. Outside the U.S. and Canada, the company markets these products through its direct sales force and, in certain countries, through selected independent distributors. The company sells its OPTI products and services both directly and through independent human medical product distributors.
Research and Development
The company's research and development expenses, which consist of salaries, employee benefits, certain licensing agreements, materials, and external consulting and development costs, were $219.8 million for the year ended December 31, 2024.
Trademarks
The company's name, logo, and the following terms are either registered trademarks or trademarks of the company in the United States and/or other countries: 4Dx, Alertys, Animana, Catalyst Dx, Catalyst One, Coag Dx, Colilert, Colisure, Cornerstone, Enterolert, ezyVet, Feline Triple, Filta-Max, Filta-Max xpress, IDEXX DecisionIQ, IDEXX inVue Dx, IDEXX I-Vision CR, IDEXX I-Vision DR, IDEXX I-Vision Mobile, IDEXX Neo, IDEXX-PACS, IDEXX SDMA, IDEXX VetAutoread, IDEXX VetLab, IDEXX VetLab UA, IDEXX VetMedStat, LaserCyte, LaserCyte Dx, OPTI, Pet Health Network, Petly Plans, ProCyte Dx, Pseudalert, Quanti-Tray, rVetLink, SediVue Dx, SNAP, SNAPduo, SNAP Pro, SNAPshot Dx, TECTA, VetConnect, VetLINK, VetLyte, Vet Radar, VetStat, and VetTest. VetAutoread is a trademark of QBC Diagnostics.
Production and Supply
Instruments and consumables: Significant products supplied by sole and single-source providers include certain Catalyst Dx and Catalyst One consumables (other than electrolyte consumables and the fructosamine, thyroxine, canine C-reactive protein, progesterone, SDMA, and Bile Acid slides), LaserCyte Dx consumables, ProCyte Dx Analyzers and consumables, InVue Dx cytology consumables, SediVue Dx urinalysis instruments and consumables, and certain components of the company’s internally manufactured analyzers.
Certain Catalyst chemistry slides are supplied by Ortho-Clinical Diagnostics, Inc. (‘Ortho’) under supply agreements that are set to expire in December of 2044. The terms of the agreement allow for early termination in certain circumstances. In the event of a notice of non-extension, the agreement will continue for a period of twelve years through December 31 of the twelfth year after such notice, up to 2044. The company is required to purchase all of its requirements for its menu of Catalyst chemistry slides from Ortho to the extent Ortho is able to supply those requirements. The agreements also prohibit Ortho from promoting and selling these chemistry slides in the veterinary sector, excluding the EU, other than to IDEXX.
The company purchases other analyzers and consumables under supply agreements with terms extending through 2034. The company has minimum purchase obligations under some of these agreements.
Competition
Companion Animal Diagnostic Offerings
The company’s major competitors in geographic locations in North America are Mars, Incorporated brands Antech Diagnostics and Heska; and Zoetis Inc. (including its wholly-owned subsidiary Abaxis, Inc.). The company also competes in certain international geographies with Zoetis Inc.; Mars, Incorporated brands, including Heska, Antech Diagnostics, scil animal care, and Asia Veterinary Diagnostics; Fujifilm Holdings Corporation; Arkray, Inc.; Mindray; and BioNote, Inc.
Water, Livestock, Poultry, and Dairy Testing Products
The company’s competitors include smaller regional companies and larger companies with livestock and poultry diagnostics and water testing solution products, such as Neogen Corporation, Charm Sciences, Inc., BioChek, Innovative Diagnostics, and Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc.
Veterinary Software, Services and Diagnostic Imaging Systems
The company sells products primarily in North America and Europe. The largest competitor in North America and the U.K. is Covetrus, Inc., which offers several systems and leverages its animal health distribution business in sales and service. The company’s competitors in the diagnostic imaging systems sector include Sound-Eklin, Antech Diagnostics, FUJIFILM, and Heska.
Human Point-of-Care Medical Diagnostic Products
The company competes primarily with human medical diagnostics companies, such as Radiometer A/S, Siemens Medical Solutions Diagnostics, Instrumentation Laboratory Company, Abbott Diagnostics, a division of Abbott Laboratories, and Roche Diagnostics Corporation.
Government Regulation
The company’s veterinary diagnostic products, including instruments, such as Catalyst One and ProCyte One, as well as their corresponding consumables, are veterinary medical devices under the jurisdiction of the FDA under the Food, Drug and Cosmetics Act (the ‘FDC Act’). Other products under FDA jurisdiction include the company’s rapid assay products, such as SNAP devices and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay plates. While the sale of these products does not require premarket approval by the FDA and does not subject the company to FDA inspections or the FDA's current Good Manufacturing Practice regulations (‘cGMP’), the FDA Act specifies that these products must not be adulterated, mislabeled, or misbranded.
A subset of the company’s veterinary diagnostic products, including its diagnostic test kits for companion and food animal infectious diseases, as well as most of its livestock and poultry products and many of its rapid assay products, are licensed and regulated in the U.S. by the Center for Veterinary Biologics within the United States Department of Agriculture (‘USDA’) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (‘APHIS’).
The company’s Tecta Systems, Colilert, Colilert-18, Colisure, Quanti-Tray, Filta-Max xpress, Enterolert, and SimPlate for heterotrophic plate counts products have been approved by the EPA for use under various regulatory programs.
The company has two FDA-validated test products, SNAP NBL and SNAP Tetra, for sale in the U.S.
The company’s OPTI instrument systems are classified by the FDA as Class I and/or Class II medical devices, and their design, manufacture, and marketing are regulated by the FDA. Accordingly, the company must comply with cGMP in the manufacture of its OPTI products. The FDA’s Quality System regulations set forth standards for the company’s product design and manufacturing processes, require the maintenance of certain records, and provide for inspections of its facilities by the FDA. New OPTI products categorized as Class I and/or Class II medical devices would require notification of and review by the FDA via a 510(k) application before marketing or sale of such products. These OPTI products are also subject to the regulations governing the manufacture and marketing of medical devices in other countries in which they are sold, including the EU Medical Device Regulation and In Vitro Diagnostic Medical Devices Regulation.
All IDEXX products must comply with applicable global product regulations, including those governing consumer product safety and materials requirements, such as the European Union's Electromagnetic Compatibility (‘EMC’) Directive, the European Regulation for Registration, Evaluation, Authorization and Restriction of Chemical Substances (‘REACH’), the Restriction of Hazardous Substances (‘RoHS’) Directive, and the Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (‘WEEE’) Directive. These complex regulatory requirements create risk to IDEXX’s ability to market and sell its products, its business, and its financial performance.
In the European Union, the company’s analyzers and certain associated equipment are subject to the requirements of the RoHS Directive, which regulates and restricts certain hazardous substances in electrical and electronic equipment.
The European Union was among the first to regulate and restrict the use of certain substances that the company uses in its products. These requirements include the Biocidal Products Regulation, which requires the use of only approved biocides in the company’s products imported to or used in the European Union, and REACH, which regulates and restricts the use of certain chemicals in the European Union.
In addition to the foregoing, the company’s business is generally subject to various U.S. and foreign regulatory authorities, including the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (the ‘FTC’) and other anti-competition authorities, and the company is also subject to anti-bribery and anti-corruption laws, such as the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act and the UK Bribery Act, import and export laws and regulations, including the U.S. import and export control and sanctions laws, and laws and regulations governing the collection, use, retention, sharing, and security of data, such as the EU General Data Protection Regulation and the EU Data Act.
History
IDEXX Laboratories, Inc., a Delaware corporation, was founded in 1983. The company was incorporated in Delaware in 1983.
