Revenues did rise 22%, but the company reported $0.21 vs $0.38 from a year prior….

Preliminary report

“There has been some confusion about the quality of the ongoing Q4 earnings season, which has seen some 47% of the S&P 500 companies report to date (and with 53% still left things can certainly change). The confusion apparently is that this has been a “good” earning season so far. Nothing could be further from the truth, and as Goldman shows in its midterm Q4 earnings report, the reality, not spin, is that earnings are tracking at $24.03, or some 6% below the consensus estimate at the start of earnings season of $25.51. This revised number, which could well drop even more from here, means that Q4 earnings will post a minuscule 1% growth in EPS year over year compared to Q4 of 2011 when Europe was imploding, and when the world’s central banks had to arrange a global bailout to prevent yet another Armageddon…”

Full article and infograph

“JetBlue Airways Corp. (JBLU) fell the most in about two months after fourth-quarter profit tumbled 96 percent, more than analysts projected, as superstorm Sandy forced flightcancellations and reduced travel demand.

JetBlue dropped 1.9 percent to $6.11 at 10:14 a.m. in New York, after earlier falling as much as 5.4 percent, the largest intraday decline since Nov. 14.

More than half of JetBlue’s departures are from New York’s John F. Kennedy International and the carrier was forced to cancel 1,700 flights there and at other airports over five days in October when Sandy hit the northeastern U.S. People living in the area were slow to resume travel in November, the carrier has said.

“Overall an uninspiring quarter, in our view, though not particularly surprising given heavy New York concentration and significant short-term demand pressures associated with Hurricane Sandy,” Jamie Baker, a JPMorgan Chase & Co. analyst in New York, said in a report today.

Net income dropped to $1 million, or break-even on a per- share basis, from $23 million, or 8 cents, a year earlier, the New York-based carrier said in a statement today. That compared with the 2-cents-a-share average estimate from nine analysts, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

Sales rose 4.2 percent to $1.19 billion from $1.15 billion a year earlier as passenger traffic increased 4.3 percent….”

Full report

“Tyco International Ltd.’s TYC -1.70% fiscal first-quarter net profit sank 49% as the company faced a tough comparison with a year-earlier period buoyed by discontinued operations, but core earnings improved, and revenue climbed.

The industrial conglomerate spun off its North American security business in September to create ADT Corp. ADT -0.18% It also split off, then merged, its pipe-and-valve business with pump-filter manufacturer Pentair Inc. PNR -0.79% What remains of Tyco is focused on fire-suppression systems for commercial buildings and safety equipment.

On Tuesday, Tyco Chief Executive George Oliver said the new Tyco is “off to a great start,” adding that revenue growth was driven partly by its acquisition strategy. “I am especially pleased with the traction we are getting from our productivity and sourcing initiatives, and the positive impact we are seeing from our increased investments in research and development,” he said, calling the first-quarter results “a solid beginning to fiscal 2013.”

For the period ended Dec. 28, Tyco reported a profit of $163 million, or 34 cents a share, compared with $322 million, or 69 cents a share, a year earlier. Excluding one-time items, however, adjusted earnings from continuing operations rose to 40 cents a share from 26 cents.

Revenue rose 4.9% to $2.6 billion, including what Tyco said was a 3% benefit from acquisitions….”

Full report

“Valero Energy Corp. (NYSE: VLO) reported fourth-quarter and full-year results before markets opened this morning. For the quarter, the oil refiner posted adjusted diluted earnings per share (EPS) of $1.82 on revenues of $34.69 billion. In the same period a year ago, the company reported EPS of $0.08 on revenues of $34.67 billion. Fourth-quarter results also compare to the Thomson Reuters consensus estimates for EPS of $1.18 and $31.01 billion in revenues…”

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“D.R. Horton Inc. (DHI), the largest U.S. homebuilder by volume, said fiscal first-quarter profit more than doubled as demand for new houses climbed in a recovering real estate market.

Net income was $66.3 million, or 20 cents a share, for the three months ended Dec. 31, up from $27.7 million, or 9 cents, a year earlier, the Fort Worth, Texas-based company said in a statement today. The average estimate of 19 analysts in a Bloomberg survey was for earnings of 14 cents a share.

Low mortgage rates and a shrinking inventory of existing residences on the market are fueling sales of new houses. U.S. builders sold 367,000 homes in 2012, the most in three years, the Commerce Department said last week. Under Chief Executive Officer Donald J. Tomnitz, D.R. Horton has focused on using its size advantage to control costs and increase market share by accelerating land purchases ahead of smaller competitors.

“We experienced broad improvement in demand in most of our markets this quarter, and we significantly increased our investments in homes under construction, finished lots, land and land development to capture this increasing demand,” Chairman Donald R. Horton said in the statement.

Order Growth….”

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“Jan 29 (Reuters) – International Paper Co posted better-than-expected quarterly profit on Tuesday as strong sales of corrugated boxes offset weakness in the consumer packaging unit.

IP became the largest North American producer of corrugated packaging with its 2012 buyout of smaller rival Temple-Inland , and profit in that unit jumped 10 percent. Amazon.com Inc is a key IP customer.

But in the consumer packaging unit, profit slumped 38 percent as overseas customers bought more domestically produced boxes for soap, medicine and other consumer items, causing a supply glut in the United States, IP Chief Executive John Faraci said in an interview. Roughly 20 percent of consumer packaging made in the United States is exported.

“We didn’t do as well as we could have in the fourth quarter,” Faraci said.

For the quarter, the company posted net income of $235 million, or 53 cents per share, compared with $281 million, or 65 cents per share, a year earlier….”

Full report

“Harley-Davidson Inc. on Tuesday reported lower net income during its fourth quarter on lower revenue, despite higher sales of new motorcycles in the United States and abroad.

Harley-Davidson (NYSE: HOG), the Milwaukee-based motorcycle manufacturer, said net income was $70.6 million, or 31 cents per share, in the fourth quarter ended Dec. 31, down from $105.7 million, or 46 cents per share, in the same period last year.

Net income in the 2011 fourth quarter included an additional $51 million in earnings from discontinued operations.

Motorcycles and related products revenue was down 1.5 percent to $1.01 billion, from $1.03 billion in the fourth quarter of 2011. Consolidated revenue for the quarter, which includes revenue from Harley-Davidson’s financial services unit, was down nearly 1 percent to $1.17 billion, from $1.18 billion in the year-ago period.

Retail sales of new Harley-Davidson motorcycles increased 7.5% …”

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Source

“PITTSBURGH (AP) — United States Steel Corp. saw its fourth-quarter loss shrink to $50 million as the tough economy continues to produce volatile results in the steel industry.

The Pittsburgh-based steelmaker says it lost 35 cents per share for the most recent quarter. A year ago it lost $211 million, or $1.46 per share.

The loss would have been 41 cents per share if not for a favorable settlement of a contract dispute. Still, that was better than the loss of 70 cents per share expected by analysts surveyed by FactSet.

Revenue fell 6.9 percent to $4.49 billion. Analysts had been expecting revenue of $4.33 billion.

The company says it is still facing uncertain economic and steel market conditions. U.S. Steel expects shipments to rise in the first quarter compared with fourth quarter.”

“NEW YORK (AP) — Pfizer Inc.’s fourth-quarter profit more than quadrupled, despite competition from generic drugs hurting sales, because of a $4.8 billion gain from selling its nutrition business.

The world’s biggest drugmaker said Tuesday that its net income was $6.32 billion, or 85 cents per share, up from $1.44 billion, or 19 cents per share, a year earlier.

Excluding one-time items, the Viagra maker would have had a profit of $3.51 billion, or 47 cents per share — 3 cents more than analysts surveyed by FactSet were expecting.

The New York-based company’s stock rose 4 cents to $2688 in premarket trading.

Revenue fell 7 percent to $15.1 billion, mainly due to generic competition to cholesterol blockbuster Lipitor. Analysts expected $14.35 billion.

Lipitor, which had reigned as the world’s top-selling drug ever for nearly a decade, got U.S. generic competition in December 2011 and now has generic rivals in many major markets. The drug had been bringing Pfizer nearly $11 billion a year before then, down from its peak of $13 billion a year.

In the fourth quarter, Lipitor sales plunged 91 percent in the U.S. and 71 percent worldwide, to $584 million. A dozen other medicines also had lower sales due to generic competition. But key newer drugs had double-digit sales increases, including fibromyalgia and pain treatment Lyrica, at $1.13 billion, painkiller Celebrex at $750 million, and the Prevnar 13 vaccine against meningitis and other pneumococcal infections, at $993 million….”

Full report

“(Reuters) – Eli Lilly and Co said on Tuesday that fourth-quarter profit fell as competition fromgeneric drugs, particularly for its once top-selling schizophrenia drug Zyprexa, drove revenue lower.

The U.S. drugmaker earned $827 million, or 74 cents per share, down from $858 million, or 77 cents per share, a year earlier.

Excluding special items such as asset impairments and restructuring, Lilly earned 85 cents per share, beating analysts’ expectations by 7 cents per share.

The better-than-expected results were due to cost controls as well as strong sales of key drugs, such as lung cancer treatment Alimta and antidepressant Cymbalta, Lilly spokesman Ed Sagabiel said.

Revenue dropped by about 1 percent to $5.96 billion, but were above Wall Street expectations of $5.81 billion.

Zyprexa, now facing generic competition, saw sales slide 49 percent to $385 million from $750 million a year earlier. The company said the sharp drop was partly offset by gains in sales of other drugs and its animal health products….”

Full report

“Ford Motor Co. (F), the second-largest U.S. automaker, reported fourth-quarter profit that exceeded estimates as demand for its F-Series pickups drove record results for its operations in North America.

Ford reported net income of $1.6 billion, or 40 cents a share. Excluding one-time items, the per-share profit was 31 cents, exceeding the 25-cent average estimate of 19 analysts surveyed by Bloomberg. The result compared with net income of $13.6 billion, or $3.40 a share, a year earlier, when a tax gain boosted fourth-quarter earnings. Ford said European losses were wider than forecast and the 2013 deficit would be worse….”

Full report

“Posco, Asia’s third-biggest steelmaker by output, forecast sales may fall this year after reporting worse-than-estimated fourth-quarter profit as waning orders from carmakers and shipbuilders lowered prices.

Sales on a parent basis may slip to 32 trillion won ($29 billion) in 2013 from 35.7 trillion won in 2012, the Pohang, South Korea-based company said in a regulatory filing today. Net income was 513 billion won in the three months ended Dec. 31, compared with 767 billion won a year earlier, missing the 592.6 billion won average of 18 analyst estimates compiled by Bloomberg.

China’s

economic slowdown and Europe’s fiscal crisis have reduced demand for steel used in houses, cars and ships, squeezing profits at global steelmakers. Posco (005490) today said an “unprecedented slump” in the worldwide steel market cut prices and hurt profits last year. The company also forecast its crude steel output may decline this year.

“Steel companies including Posco will have to accept the new normal — lower demand, lower price and narrower margin,” said Kim Hag Ju, chief investment officer at Woori Asset Management Co., which oversees $19 billion in assets. “We won’t see the steel boom era that we’ve watched in the past decade spurred by China’s growth.”

Posco fell 0.1 percent to 355,500 won at the close in Seoul today, while the local benchmarkKospi index gained 0.8 percent. The stock has climbed 1.9 percent this year, compared with a 2.1 percent drop in Kospi. (KOSPI) The earnings announcement came after the stock market closed.

’Severe Competition’…”

Full article

Display adds were down significantly…

” “I’m proud of Yahoo!’s 2012 and fourth quarter results. In 2012, Yahoo! exhibited revenue growth for the first time in 4 years, with revenue up 2 percent year-over-year,” said Yahoo! CEO Marissa Mayer. “During the quarter we made progress by growing our executive team, signing key partnerships including those with NBC Sports and CBS Television, and launching terrific mobile experiences for Yahoo! Mail and Flickr. At the same time, we achieved tremendous internal transformation in the culture, energy and execution of the Company.”

GAAP revenue was $1,346 million for the fourth quarter of 2012, a 2 percent increase from the fourth quarter of 2011. Revenue excluding traffic acquisition costs (“revenue ex-TAC”) was $1,221 million for the fourth quarter of 2012, a 4 percent increase compared to the fourth quarter of 2011. GAAP revenue was $4,987 million for the full year of 2012, flat compared to the prior year. Revenue ex-TAC was $4,468 million for the full year of 2012, a 2 percent increase from the prior year.

Adjusted EBITDA for the fourth quarter of 2012 was $509 million, an 8 percent increase from the same period of 2011. Adjusted EBITDA was $1,699 million for the full year of 2012, a 3 percent increase from the prior year.

GAAP income from operations decreased 22 percent to $190 million in the fourth quarter of 2012, compared to $242 million in the fourth quarter of 2011. Non-GAAP income from operations was $283 million in the fourth quarter of 2012 compared to $259 million in the fourth quarter of 2011. GAAP income from operations for the full year of 2012 was $566 million, compared to $800 million for the prior year. Non-GAAP income from operations was $825 million in both years.

GAAP net earnings for the fourth quarter of 2012 was $272 million, an 8 percent decrease from the same period of 2011. Non-GAAP net earnings for the fourth quarter of 2012 was $370 million, a 20 percent increase from the same period of 2011. GAAP net earnings for the full year of 2012 was $3,945 million, compared to $1,049 million for the prior year. For the full year of 2012, GAAP net earnings included a net gain of $2,755 million related to the sale of Alibaba shares. Non-GAAP net earnings for the full year of 2012 was $1,407 million, a 35 percent increase from the prior year.

GAAP net earnings per diluted share was $0.23 in the fourth quarter of 2012, compared to $0.24 in the fourth quarter of 2011. Non-GAAP net earnings per diluted share was $0.32 in the fourth quarter of 2012, compared to $0.25 in the fourth quarter of 2011. GAAP net earnings per diluted share was $3.28 for the full year of 2012, compared to $0.82 for the prior year. For the full year of 2012, GAAP net earnings included a net gain of $2,755 million, or $2.29 per diluted share, related to the sale of Alibaba shares. Non-GAAP net earnings per diluted share was $1.17 for the full year of 2012, compared to $0.81 for the prior year.

Business Highlights…” 

Full report

“Biogen Idec Inc.’s BIIB -0.14% fourth-quarter net profit fell 2.7% as the biotechnology company’s efforts to bulk up its product pipeline masked its revenue growth.

The company also forecast 2013 adjusted earnings of between $7.15 and $7.25 a share on about 10% revenue growth. Analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters expect $7.27 a share on a 9% rise in revenue to $5.98 billion.

Biogen on Thursday said a new version of its blockbuster multiple-sclerosis drug Avonex was successful in a late-stage trial, strengthening the company’s stable of drugs for the degenerative nerve disease. However, the overall market for such injectable drugs is expected to decline sharply amid a growing market for oral-pill-based drugs. Biogen’s own BG-12 pill could be approved and launched in the U.S. as soon as March.

Biogen has been beefing up its sales force and readying its manufacturing supply chain as some drugs in its late-stage product pipeline have been drawing closer to entering the market….”

Full article

“MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Caterpillar’s fourth-quarter net income fell by half after it took a big charge for a deal in China that went bad, and because of slower growth in China and economic uncertainty in the U.S. and Europe.

Still, its adjusted profit and revenue were better than analysts expected. And while cautious about the global economic outlook, Caterpillar does expect conditions to pick up later in the year, outside of Europe. Shares rose 2.4 percent in premarket trading.

Caterpillar Inc. makes construction and mining equipment as well as power generators, so its growth rises and falls with the world’s economy.

For the fourth quarter, Caterpillar earned $697 million, or $1.04 per share. That was down from a profit of $1.55 billion, or $2.32 per share a year earlier.

Revenue fell 7 percent to $16.08 billion as dealers reduced inventory.

The most recent quarter included a non-cash charge of 87 cents per share to write down the purchase of Zhengzhou Siwei. Not counting that, analysts surveyed by FactSet had been expecting a profit of $1.70 per share.

Caterpillar’s purchase of Siwei last year gave it a new business — roofing supports for mines — in a country where mining is growing quickly. But on Jan. 18, Caterpillar said it had found “deliberate, multi-year, coordinated accounting misconduct” in the accounting at Siwei, and said it will write down its investment in the company by $580 million. It also said it dismissed several senior managers at the company….”

Full report

“Twelve analysts covering Toyota Motor Corp. (7203), Japan’s largest manufacturer, have raised their earnings estimates for next fiscal year as the yen dropped against all major currencies in the past month. By contrast, shares of Hyundai Motor Co. (005380) and Samsung Electronics Co. (005930) fell after the South Korean exporters voiced concerns about the rising won….”

Full article

“Earnings season is shifting into high gear in the final week of January, with six Dow Jones components, and more than a fifth of the S&P 500 companies reporting. With the Dow rallying to its highest level since October 2007 and the S&P hitting 1,500, expectations are building for a range of industries to reveal a strengthening economy.

We’ll hear from a number of industrials, including Caterpillar Monday morning andBoeing before the bell Wednesday. With so much focus on the Dreamliner debacle, investors will hope to hear more guidance on how it’ll impact the company’s bottom line. And Caterpillar will be watched as a bellwether for the global economy.

(Read More: Whistleblower Says Dreamliner Batteries Could ‘Explode’.)

Internet companies will be in focus with Facebook reporting its fourth quarter results after the bell Wednesday. With the stock making dramatic gains on various new monetization efforts, Wall Street’s waiting to see whether the company will live up to heightened expectations.

When Yahoo reports after the bell Monday we’ll hear what kind of progress CEO Marissa Mayer is making in her brief tenure. While Facebook and Yahoo reveal what’s happening with online advertising, we’ll get a peek into the TV advertising market when Viacom reports Thursday morning.

When Amazon reports after the bell Tuesday we’ll see how well its Kindle lineup sold over the all-important holiday season. On the component side, we’ll hear fromVMWare Monday afternoon, EMC Tuesday morning, and Qualcomm Wednesday afternoon….”

Full article and video 

“HOUSTON (AP) — Halliburton’s net income for the fourth quarter declined 26 percent on pricing pressures in the North American market and one time charges from the Deepwater Horizon disaster, as well as acquisitions.

Yet adjusted results beat Wall Street expectations, and shares rose 4 percent before the opening bell Friday.

The oilfield services company earned $669 million, or 72 cents per share, for the three months ended Dec. 31. That’s down from $906 million, or 98 cents per share, a year ago.

Removing one-time charges and gains, earnings from continuing operations were 67 cents per share.

Revenue increased 3 percent to $7.29 billion from $7.06 billion, bolstered by international growth — particularly in the Middle East, Asia and Latin America. The company said that its quarterly revenue performance was the highest in its history.

Analysts surveyed by FactSet expected earnings of 61 cents per share on revenue of $7.06 billion….”

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