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Neogen(NEOG Quote) and its subsidiaries develop, manufacture and market products dedicated to food and animal safety. The company's food safety products consist primarily of diagnostic test kits and complementary products, such as dehydrated culture material. These are sold in the U.S., Canada and parts of Europe by company sales personnel, and by distributors elsewhere.

Our buy rating for Neogen has not changed since February 2003. The company's strengths can be seen in areas such as its revenue growth, largely solid financial position and solid stock performance. On July 22, the company reported that its earnings for the fourth quarter of fiscal year 2008 jumped 37.9% from the same quarter of fiscal 2007. Neogen reported revenue growth of 19.6% year over year to $27.1 million from $22.7 million. Net income grew to $3.18 million or 21 cents per share in the quarter from $2.3 million or 16 cents per share in the third quarter of fiscal 2007. Additionally, Neogen's revenues surpassed $100 million for the first time in its history in fiscal year 2008, coming in at $102.4 million, up from $86.1 million in the previous fiscal year. Net income per share was 81 cents in fiscal year 2008, compared to 64 cents in the prior year. Both revenue and earnings for the 2008 fiscal year established new all-time highs for the 26-year-old company. Neogen's Food Safety segment led the company's fiscal year 2008 revenue increase with sales up 23%. Furthermore, since none of Neogen's recent acquisitions involved food safety products, the increase in Food Safety revenue was comprised entirely of organic sales growth.