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Mixed results for Kraft, Kellogg, Colgate and P&G
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CINCINNATI - Makers of household consumer and food products reported mixed results amid the slumping economy Wednesday as they raised prices on everything from hot dogs to toothpaste to try to offset soaring energy and ingredient costs.
Procter & Gamble Co., the maker of Pampers diapers and Gillette razors, said that higher retail prices, cost controls and strong growth in emerging markets helped lift its fiscal third-quarter profit 8 percent. P&G also raised its full-year outlook, sending its shares up 3 percent.
A.G. Lafley, the company's chairman and chief executive, said it remains optimistic about sustaining its growth.
"Virtually everything we sell is not discretionary; it's a staple," he said in a conference call. "You have to go to the bathroom. You have to get up in the morning and brush your teeth. You've got to shower. You've got to shave. ... You've got to wash your clothes."
But rival Colgate-Palmolive Co., with products including toothpaste and dish soap, said first-quarter earnings fell 4 percent as the company took restructuring charges and a higher provision for income taxes. Colgate said that rising materials costs were offset by raising prices, but that margins would be pressured as the cost of raw materials kept rising.
The company's shares slid 4.9 percent, or $4.88, to $70.90. It will raise Colgate toothpaste prices by 9 percent this summer.
Kellogg Company's first-quarter profit fell 2 percent, despite recent price increases.
Kellogg raised wholesale prices an average of 3.2 percent across much of its product portfolio, said spokeswoman Kris Charles. Prices went up for snacks at the end of December and for cereal and frozen products in late January.
At Kraft Foods Inc., the nation's largest food and beverage maker, first-quarter earnings dropped 13 percent.
P&G shares rose 1.8 percent, or $1.20 to $67.10. Kellogg was down 73 cents, or 1.4 percent, to $51.25, while Kraft was up 83 cents, or 2.7 percent, to $31.60.
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