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Recalls take a toll on Mattel profits

Six-year-old Yvette Ibarra, holds a Dancing Princess Barbie doll while shopping at a ToysRus in Monrovia, Calif. Mattel Inc. on Monday, reported a 1 percent drop in fiscal third-quarter profit, due to charges related to multiple product recalls. Associated Press (File Associated Press / The Spokesman-Review)
From Staff and Wire Reports The Spokesman-Review
Six-year-old Yvette Ibarra, holds a Dancing Princess Barbie doll while shopping at a ToysRus in Monrovia, Calif. Mattel Inc. on Monday, reported a 1 percent drop in fiscal third-quarter profit, due to charges related to multiple product recalls. Associated Press (File Associated Press / The Spokesman-Review)

Mattel Inc. on Monday reported a 1 percent drop in fiscal third-quarter profit due to the impact of charges, costs and supply chain delays related to multiple product recalls by the world’s biggest toy maker.

The El Segundo, Calif.-based company said net income for the quarter ended Sept. 30 slipped to $236.8 million, or 61 cents per share, from $239 million, or 62 cents per share, in the year-ago period. Latest-quarter results included charges of about $40 million related to the company’s product recalls covering merchandise containing small magnets or tainted with lead paint.

Sales rose 3 percent to $1.84 billion from $1.79 billion a year ago, mainly helped by the weaker dollar.

Analysts surveyed by Thomson Financial had expected profit of 70 cents per share on revenue of $1.91 billion.

Its shares fell 20 cents to $22.25 in late morning trading Monday.

Citigroup Inc. said Monday its third-quarter profit dropped 57 percent after the biggest U.S. bank took a hit of more than $3 billion in mortgage-backed security losses, leveraged debt write-downs, and fixed-income trading losses.

The bank also boosted loan-loss provisions by $2.24 billion — a higher amount than it estimated a week ago — in anticipation of more deterioration in consumer credit.

Chief Financial Officer Gary Crittenden said in a conference call with analysts that parts of its fixed-income holdings have weakened: “We are not optimistic they will regain a foothold in the market,” Crittenden said. He also pointed to an acceleration in mortgage delinquencies in September, and said consumer credit will keep deteriorating in the fourth quarter.

Idaho Independent Bank reported lower third quarter earnings of $2.7 million, or 46 cents per share, on Monday.

The results compared to income of $2.9 million, or 49 cents per share, for the third quarter of 2006.

For the first nine months of the year, the Coeur d’Alene-based bank reported net income of $8.3 million, or $1.39 per share, compared to net income of $8.2 million, or $1.38 per share for the first nine months of 2006.

Charles Schwab Corp.’s third-quarter profit surpassed analyst expectations as the discount stock brokerage reaped a big gain from the sale of its wealth management division and harvested more revenue from an expanding mix of customers.

The San Francisco-based company said Monday it earned $1.53 billion, or $1.28 per share, during the three months ended in September, a more than fivefold increase from $266 million, or 21 cents per share, a year ago. A $1.2 billion windfall from Schwab’s $3.3 billion sale of its U.S. Trust wealth management subsidiary accounted for most of the higher profit. Bank of America Corp. completed the U.S. Trust acquisition at the start of the quarter.