Xerox profits more than double
In the latest sign of recovery, Xerox Corp. reported its second-quarter profits more than doubled on strong sales of new color products and raised its profit forecast for the year.
The Stamford-based maker of copiers and printers said Friday it earned $208 million, or 21 cents per share, for the April-June period, compared with $86 million, or 9 cents per share, for the same period a year ago.
The results beat the consensus estimate of 17 cents per share of analysts surveyed by Thomson First Call.
“I thought it was pretty strong,” said Jeff Embersits, senior analyst with Shareholder Value Management in San Francisco. “They’re gaining share. The new products are doing great.”
Revenue in the second quarter was $3.85 billion, down 2 percent from $3.92 billion a year ago. Xerox attributed the drop to a decline in sales of older light-lens technology and weak performance in Latin America.
• Maytag Corp. posted a loss for the second quarter due to falling sales in housewares and commercial appliances, costs from a strike at a washing machine plant and a corporate restructuring plan and litigation charges.
The results missed Wall Street expectations and its shares sank nearly 10 percent.
The nation’s third largest appliance manufacturer said Friday it lost $41.1 million, or 52 cents a share, for the April-June period compared to a profit of $25.2 million, or 32 cents a share, a year earlier.
Sales for the quarter were $1.15 billion, down from $1.16 billion from a year ago.
• An unexpected charge on a troublesome project off the coast of Brazil pushed Halliburton Co. to a $663 million second-quarter loss, overshadowing a 38 percent increase in revenues that the oil services company said Friday was “largely attributable” to its KBR subsidiary’s government contracts in the Middle East.
The net loss, which amounted to $1.51 per share, also included a charge of $609 million, or $1.39 per share, related to the Houston-based conglomerate’s pending $4.17 billion settlement of 400,000 asbestos and 21,000 silica claims. Halliburton earned $26 million, or 6 cents per share, during the same period a year ago.
Excluding the charges, Halliburton earned 34 cents per share in its most recent quarter, beating Wall Street expectations by a penny. The company credited an improved performance in its energy services group, including increased land rig activity, more drilling and higher prices.
• Automaker Volkswagen on Friday reported a 9 percent profit decline in the second quarter and said its operating profit for the year will be lower than earlier forecasts, saying rough market conditions made its original earnings goal unachievable.
Net profit for the April-June quarter fell to 357 million euros ($443 million) from 394 million euros in the year-earlier quarter. That was still a sharp improvement over the first quarter’s profit of 26 million euros ($32 million) and was more than double the average estimate of 163 million euros ($202 million) by nine analysts surveyed by Dow Jones Newswires.
• Clear Channel Communications Inc. said its second-quarter profit rose 1 percent from a year ago but radio revenue continued to lag increases in other parts of the media company’s business.
The nation’s largest radio station operator said Friday that it earned $254 million, or 41 cents per share, in the April-June period. That was up slightly from $251 million, or 41 cents per share, a year earlier.