YOUR GUIDE TO THE TWIN CITIES
business
As cost-cutting efforts take hold, Valspar profit jumps
- Updated: November 23, 2009 - 7:21 PM
- 3
- comments
resize text 
- buy reprints
Valspar Corp.'s fourth-quarter earnings rose a bigger-than-projected 28 percent, as margins surged amid the maker of paint and coatings' cost-cutting efforts despite declining sales.
The company also said that it expects earnings in its new year of around $1.85 to $2.05 a share on "modest" revenue growth amid "ongoing pressure on raw-material costs." Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expected earnings of $1.93 on 6 percent revenue growth to $3.05 billion.
Valspar's results showed its cost-cutting efforts were beginning to kick in, and Chief Executive William Mansfield said the restructuring had improved its efficiency and competitive position.
Makers of paint and coatings have seen demand for their products slump amid the housing crisis.
For the quarter ended Oct. 30, Valspar reported profit of $49.9 million, or 49 cents a share, up from $38.9 million, or 35 cents, a year earlier.
Excluding items such as restructuring charges, earnings rose to 53 cents a share, from 42 cents per share in the year-ago period.
Revenue dropped 16 percent, to $776.6 million, and the most recent quarter was one week shorter than the year-ago period.
Adjusted for that, the decline was 12 percent.
Analysts had most recently expected earnings of 48 cents per share on sales of $783 million.
Gross margin rose to 35.8 percent, from 26.9 percent amid cost cuts.
Shares of Valspar fell 95 cents Monday, or 3.5 percent, to close at $26.60.
DOW JONES NEWS SERVICE
- 3
- comments
- resize text
- buy reprints
ADVERTISEMENT
- Hecker's location turns into a cell game
- More Delta jobs could fly from Twin Cities to Atlanta
- Prudential sacks, sues its 'Agent of the Year'
- Graves gave Target an edge
- New Brighton insurance agent could lose second home
- Downtown Whole Foods to become a reality
- Cook receiver sues broker for $48 million
- 3M execs are cutting costs, but flying high
ADVERTISEMENT
inside the StarTribune
-
425 Portland Av. S.
Minneapolis, MN 55488
(612) 673-4000
- Company
- Subscriber Services
- Website
- Buy Ads
- Store
- Connect with Us
© 2012 StarTribune. All rights reserved.
StarTribune.com is powered by Limelight Networks
Newspaper Subscriptions
eEdition
RSS
Newsletters
