Earnings briefs for May 4, 2004

Tuesday, May 4, 2004 | 11:11 a.m.

Earnings drop 73 percent

SAN FRANCISCO -- Safeway Inc., owner of Von's supermarkets in Las Vegas, today reported first-quarter profit plunged 73 percent as more than half of its earnings evaporated during a bitter supermarket strike in Southern California.

The Pleasanton-based grocer said its net income for the three months ended March 27 totaled $43.1 million, or 10 cents per share. That compared with a profit of $162.6 million, or 36 cents per share, a the same time last year.

First-quarter sales fell 5 percent to $7.64 billion, down from $8.04 billion last year.

Net income rises sixfold

WEST WINDSOR, N.J. -- Tyco International Ltd., the world's biggest maker of security systems, said fiscal second-quarter profit rose more than sixfold, helped by cost cuts and sales of new health care products. The company raised its 2004 forecast.

Net income in the quarter ended March 31 climbed to $782.4 million, or 37 cents a share, from $124.3 million, or 6 cents, a year earlier. Sales increased 12 percent to $10.04 billion from $8.99 billion, Tyco said today in a statement.

Chief Executive Officer Edward Breen, 48, is improving profit margins after working to repair Tyco's finances since replacing L. Dennis Kozlowski in 2002. Breen cut jobs, closed plants and paid debt in the quarter as currency gains and a rebounding U.S. economy lifted sales. Healthcare was the biggest contributor to profit as sales of pre-filled syringes and safety needles climbed.

Acquisition helps income

CINCINNATI -- Procter & Gamble Co., the biggest U.S. household-goods maker, said third-quarter profit rose 20 percent as sales surged at the fastest pace in more than a decade, helped by the company's Wella AG acquisition and beauty products.

Net income, which beat analysts' forecasts, increased to $1.53 billion, or $1.09 a share, from $1.27 billion, or 91 cents, a year earlier. Sales in the quarter ended March 31 rose 22 percent to $13 billion, boosted 5 percent by a decline in the U.S. dollar, the Cincinnati-based company said last week in a statement.

Chief Executive A.G. Lafley, 56, in September purchased hair-care maker Wella for $6.9 billion, the company's biggest acquisition.

Higher-price cosmetics and nonprescription drugs are helping expand the beauty and health units, which have gained sales faster than the company's detergents, diapers and snacks.

Film studio's loss narrows

LOS ANGELES -- Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Inc., the film studio controlled by billionaire Kirk Kerkorian, said its first-quarter loss narrowed to $21.3 million as it sold more DVDs and tickets to movies such as "Barbershop 2: Back in Business."

The net loss shrank to 9 cents a share from $55.8 million, or 22 cents, a year earlier. Revenue climbed 17 percent to about $464 million from $395.2 million, the Los Angeles-based company said in a regulatory filing.

Shipments of digital video discs rose 58 percent.

MGM, owner of a movie library with about 4,000 titles, is benefiting from sales of DVDs as consumers replace videocassettes with the new format.

Earnings beat expectations

ATLANTA -- Wood products giant Georgia-Pacific Corp. said higher sales of lumber and structural panels and its launches of improved paper towel and bath tissue lines helped it swing to a profit in the first quarter behind an 18 percent jump in revenue.

The results, announced last week, beat Wall Street expectations.

The Atlanta-based maker of Brawny paper towels said it had net income of $147 million, or 57 cents a share, for the three months ending March 31, compared with a loss of $30 million, or 12 cents a share, in the same period a year ago.

Gas prices drive profit

SAN RAMON, Calif. -- Driven by soaring gasoline prices, ChevronTexaco Corp.'s first-quarter earnings climbed 33 percent, continuing the oil giant's recent run of gushing profit.

The San Ramon-based company said last week that it earned $2.56 billion, or $2.40 per share, in the three months ended March, up from $1.92 billion, or $1.81 per share, at the same time last year.

This year's results outstripped the mean estimate of $2.02 per share among analysts surveyed by Thomson First Call.

First-quarter revenue totaled $33.6 billion, up 9 percent from $30.8 billion last year.