US corporate results round up
Colgate-Palmolive’s sales slow but profit still rises
Colgate-Palmolive said yesterday a key measure of sales growth slowed for the second quarter in a row, partly due to economic and labour problems in Venezuela. It earned $598m, or $1.26 per share, in the fourth quarter, up slightly from $590m, or $1.21 per share, in the quarter a year earlier. Sales rose 2.5 per cent to $4.29bn, missing analysts’ target of $4.31bn.
Time Warner disappoints as customer numbers fall
Time Warner Cable added fewer high-speed Internet users than expected in the fourth quarter and missed analysts’ estimates for earnings growth and cash flow this year. Average revenue per customer rose to $119.83 from $117.58 in the third quarter. Net income for the fourth quarter fell to $513m from $564m a year earlier.
Dow Chemical shares drop after results disappoint
Dow Chemical reported a lower-than-expected adjusted profit yesterday as international demand for polyurethane and chlorine withered, especially in China and Europe. For the fourth quarter, Dow’s net loss widened to $716m, or 61 cents per share, from $20m, two cents per share, in the year-earlier quarter. Excluding one-time items, the firm earned 33 cents in the quarter.
Advertising revenue drags down turnover at Viacom
SpongeBob SquarePants and the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles could not lift ad sales at Viacom’s stable of cable networks, which dragged down first quarter total revenue. Viacom reported total revenue fell 16 per cent to $3.3bn, shy of analysts average forecast of $3.48bn. Net income fell to $473m from $591m a year earlier.
Occidental Petroleum’s profit slumps on $1.1bn hit
Occidental Petroleum , the fourth-largest US oil company, reported a 79 per cent drop in quarterly profit yesterday as it wrote down the value of certain gas properties by $1.1bn.
The company’s net profit fell to $336m, or 45 cents per share, in the fourth quarter from $1.6bn, or $2.02 per share, a year earlier. Revenue rose two per cent to $6.17bn.