“(Reuters) – Honeywell International Inc posted fourth-quarter earnings just above Wall Street estimates, reflecting the diversified U.S. manufacturer’s campaign to boost profit margins in the face of sluggish sales growth.

The maker of cockpit electronics and systems to manage the climate and security of large buildings said on Friday that earnings came to $251 million, or 32 cents per share. For the year-earlier period, the company booked a loss of $310 million, or 40 cents per share.

Factoring out accounting items related to the company’s pension plan, the profit was $1.10 per share, topping the analysts’ average forecast of $1.09, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

Overall profit margins rose to 15.6 percent of sales from 15.1 percent a year earlier as Chief Executive Officer Dave Cote has been pushing to boost productivity across the company’s four divisions, including consolidating businesses into fewer locations.

Revenue rose 1 percent to $9.58 billion from $9.47 billion a year earlier….”

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“Procter & Gamble Co. (PG), whose chief executive officer is under pressure from activist investor Bill Ackman, raised its 2013 earnings forecast after gaining U.S. market share and posting quarterly profit that beat analysts’ estimates.

Net income more than doubled to $4.06 billion, or $1.39 a share, in the second quarter ended Dec. 31, Cincinnati-based P&G said today in a statement. Excluding some items, profit of $1.22 a share topped the $1.11 average of estimates compiled by Bloomberg.

The results underscore CEO Bob McDonald’s ability to gain market share after putting more emphasis on leading brands while reducing expenses, cutting jobs and consolidating local suppliers. The executive has been focusing on his turnaround plan while Ackman, who took a stake in P&G last year, has pushed to replace him.
“There are signs that the company is improving — slowly – – but that momentum needs to continue going forward for discontent to evaporate,” said Ali Dibadj, an analyst at Sanford C. Bernstein & Co. “It’s been a long period of underperformance.”
P&G rose 2 percent to $71.80 at 7:28 a.m. in New York. The shares gained 1.8 percent last year compared with a 13 percent gain for the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index.
The company raised and narrowed its annual profit forecast, excluding some items, to a range of $3.97 to $4.07 a share, from $3.80 to $4. Analysts predicted $3.98, on average.

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“Samsung Electronics Co. (005930) fell to a two-month low in Seoul trading after forecasting a slowdown in smartphone demand and predicting that a stronger currency may cut operating profit by 3 trillion won ($2.8 billion) this year.

The world’s largest maker of mobile phones, TVs and computer-memory chips dropped 2.5 percent after stoking concerns about the smartphone market triggered by an Apple Inc. share plunge yesterday. The forecast also overshadowed a better-than- expected 76 percent jump in quarterly net income.

“Fourth-quarter results were good, but the problem now is what lies ahead,” said Kim Hyung Sik, a Seoul-based analyst with Taurus Investment Securities. “The high-end smartphone market has largely become saturated, while the fast Chinese growth in the lower segment will make it difficult for anyone to see strong profit growth there.”

Samsung and Apple (AAPL), which together make more than half the world’s smartphones, face slower growth in developed nations as years of surging sales have limited the number of new customers they can find. In China, the companies are batting with local phone-makers offering models costing as little as $100.

“Chinese vendors are growing fast,” Kim Hyun Joon, vice president at Samsung’s mobile communications business, said on a conference call today. Global market growth also will get “somewhat weaker” starting this year, he said.

Stronger Won…”

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“SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) — Starbucks Corp. SBUX +0.61% reported late Thursday its fiscal first-quarter profit rose to $432 million, or 57 cents a share, from $382 million, or 50 cents a share, a year ago. Revenue for the quarter ended Dec. 30 rose 11% to $3.8 billion from $3.44 billion. Analysts surveyed by FactSet had expected the Seattle-based coffee giant to earn 57 cents a share on $3.85 billion in revenue. Starbucks stood by its fiscal 2013 revenue growth target of 10% to 13%. Starbucks shares fell 1.1% to $54.00 in after-hours trade.”

“AT&T reported quarterly earnings Thursday that fell just short of analysts’ predictions, while revenues edged slightly past expectations.

The telecommunications company’s shares rose after the closing bell, following the news.

What is AT&T stockdoing now? (Click here for the latest after-hours quotes.)

Earnings excluding items rose to 44 cents per share from 42 cents a share in the year-earlier period.

Revenue improved to $32.58 billion from $32.50 billion a year ago.

Wall Street had expected AT&T to report earnings excluding items of 45 cents a share on $32.22 billion in revenue, according to Thomson Reuters consensus estimates.

As a carrier for the iPhone, AT&T’s fortunes are also tied to Apple, whose shares took a beating on Wednesday after announcing a revenue disappointment.”

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“REDMOND, Wash. (AP) — Microsoft says its fourth-quarter earnings slipped 4 percent, despite a lift from its latest version of Windows.

The results announced Thursday are the first to include Windows 8. The program is a dramatic overhaul of the Microsoft Corp. operating system that powers most PCs. Windows 8 came out Oct. 26 with slightly more than two months left in Microsoft’s fiscal second quarter.

Although the Windows 8 sales haven’t been as impressive as investors hoped, revenue in Microsoft’s Windows division climbed 24 percent from the previous year.

BGC Financial analyst Colin Gillis said Microsoft “has multiple revenue streams that are still very nice businesses.”

“I kind of like the Windows segment,” he said, adding that the 24 percent growth was “a little stronger than expected.”

Microsoft earned $6.4 billion, or 76 cents per share, during the final three months of the year. That was down from $6.6 billion, or 78 cents per share, a year earlier.

The company’s total revenue rose 3 percent from last year to $21.5 billion…”

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“WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Lockheed Martin Corp and Raytheon Co warned on Thursday that U.S.defense budget cuts would eat into their sales this year, but they forecast very different effects on their bottom lines.

Lockheed, the Pentagon’s biggest supplier, said it could cut enough costs that earnings would not only grow but also would exceed expectations. Raytheon, on the other hand, said its profit would shrink as the arms maker gets squeezed by the end of high-margin programs and the start of new, low-margin ones.

Their divergent fortunes illustrate the tough year ahead for defense contractors, which are uncertain about just how deeply the U.S. government plans to cut military spending to help rein in the soaring deficit.

Lockheed makes fighter jets, among other armaments, while Raytheon makes the Patriot missiles and other defense equipment.

Lockheed’s forecast assumes Congress will avert $500 billion in additional Pentagon spending reductions known as “sequestration” that are due to take effect over the next decade, starting in March.

But Lockheed still expects sales to contract as much as 6 percent this year, an even steeper slide than the decline of as much as 3 percent that Raytheon forecast.

Shares of both companies fell in morning trading, with Lockheed down 2.3 percent at $93.84 andRaytheon down 2.1 percent at $56.96.

BEAT EXPECTATIONS

Lockheed said earnings per share dropped 19 percent to $1.73 in the fourth quarter from $2.14 a year earlier, reflecting a large noncash pension adjustment, higher income tax expenses and a charge for job cuts in its aeronautics division.

Excluding those one-time items, the company earned $1.91 per share, beating the consensus view of analysts polled by Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S by 9 cents….”

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“MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — 3M, which makes Post-it notes, industrial products, and construction materials, says its fourth-quarter net income rose 3.9 percent as growing profits in health care and consumer goods offset declines in other areas.

3M Co.’s businesses cover a wide range of industries and it gets its sales from all over the globe, so its results are a closely-watched economic bellwether.

The Maplewood, Minnesota-based company earned $991 million, or $1.41 per share, for the quarter that ended Dec. 31. That matched analysts’ expectations. A year ago it earned $954 million, or $1.35 per share.

Revenue rose 4 percent to $7.39 billion. Analysts expected $7.17 billion.

The company affirmed its 2013 profit guidance of $6.70 to $6.95 per share. Analysts expect $6.86 per share.

Its shares rose 51 cents to $100 in premarket trading…”

“DALLAS (AP) — Southwest Airlines Co. says fourth-quarter earnings fell by nearly half on higher spending for fuel, labor and maintenance.

The airline’s revenue rose slightly, however, as the average fare climbed almost $8 higher than a year ago.

Southwest also said that bookings for the first three months of 2013 look strong. It said that based onbookings and ticket prices so far, a key revenue measure should rise by 2 percent to 3 percent in January compared with the same month last year.

Southwest, the nation’s fourth-biggest airline, said Thursday that net income was $78 million, or 11 cents per share. That’s down from $152 million, or 20 cents per share, a year earlier.

Excluding items such as fuel contracts, the net income would have been 9 cents per share, beating the 7-cents-per-share forecast among analysts surveyed by FactSet.

Revenue ticked up 1.6 percent to $4.17 billion but fell short of the $4.20 billion that analysts expected.

Expenses rose faster, however, by 3.1 percent. That includes a 4.5 percent increase in labor costs and a 13 percent jump in maintenance as the airline continued to overhaul the cabins inside many of its planes….”

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“Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. (BMY) reported fourth-quarter earnings that topped analysts’ estimates after taking a tax benefit for a hepatitis C drug that failed last year.

Net income rose to $925 million, or 56 cents a share, from $852 million, or 50 cents, a year earlier, the New York-based drugmaker said today in a statement. Excluding certain items, profit was 47 cents a share, 5 cents better than the average of 15 analysts’ estimates compiled by Bloomberg. The earnings included an $83 million tax benefit the company recorded from Inhibitex Inc., acquired in 2012 for a hepatitis C drug that was abandoned after patients suffered heart ailments in studies.

Chief Executive Officer Lamberto Andreotti called 2012 a transition year for Bristol-Myers because it lost exclusive U.S. sales rights for its top-selling blood thinner Plavix and must begin to rely on new products such as its skin-cancer drug Yervoy. The company has “continued to build the post-Plavix portfolio and operating structure that provide a solid foundation for our future growth,” he said in a statement.

The growth may have to wait past 2013, which the company projected as another year of declining results. Bristol-Myers reduced the 2013 forecast it gave two years ago to $1.78 a share to $1.88 a share, after promising at least $1.95 per share. The forecast was in line with Wall Street’s lower estimates.

Bristol-Myers also predicted annual sales of $16.2 billion to $17 billion, compared with analysts’ estimates of $16.61 billion…”

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47.8 m iPhones sold…below consensus,  22.9m  iPads sold…beating consensus

gross margins come in at 38.6%

guidance of $41-43b with margins of 37.5-38.5%

Stock off $24 bones @ $491ish

Preliminary report

WOW!

Revenues of $945m vs consensus of $934m…

Subscribers are on the high end both domestically and internationally….

Company gives better guidance than estimates for next Q with slightly higher expectations of new subscribers…

Shorts get fucked!

Come back later for the full report as their website with the earnings release is crashing…..

Preliminary report

“Advanced Micro Devices reported a fourth-quarter loss on a non-GAAP basis that was narrower than analysts’ estimates.

The chip maker’s shares rose after the closing bell. What is AMD’s stock doing now? (Click here for the latest quote after the bell.)

AMD reported a loss per share of 63 cents on revenue of $1.16 billion. On a non-GAAP basis, AMD’s operating loss was 14 cents per share. Revenue was down nearly a third from the year-earlier quarter as it grapples with a declining PC market and a shift toward smartphones and tablets.

The company’s gross margin contracted to 15 percent from 46 percent a year earlier.

The Street had expected a 20 cent loss on $1.15 billion in revenues, according to Thomson Reuters estimates….”

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“(This is a breaking news story. Check back for updates to this article on CNBC.com.)

McDonald’s reported quarterly earnings and revenue that beat analysts’ expectations on Wednesday, but warned that it sees sales lower early in the first quarter.

After the earnings announcement, the company’s shares edged lower in pre-market trading. (Click here to see how McDonald’s stock is trading before the opening bell following the earnings release.)

The company posted fourth-quarter earnings excluding items of $1.38 per share, up from $1.33 a share in the year-earlier period.

Revenue increased to $6.95 billion from $6.82 billion a year ago.

Analysts had expected the company to report earnings excluding items of $1.33 a share on $6.89 billion in revenue, according to a consensus estimate from Thomson Reuters.

In the U.S., same-store sales were up 0.3 percent in the quarter, but same-store sales in Europe were down 0.6 percent and comparable sales in the Asia-Pacific/Mideast/Africa were off 1.7 percent.

The fast-food giant warned that it expects sales to be lower in January. “For the near-term we expect top and bottom-line growth to remain pressured, with January’s global comparable sales expected to be negative,” CEO Don Thompson said in a statement.”

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“Jan 23 (Reuters) – Upscale leather-goods maker and retailer Coach Inc on Wednesday reported holiday quarter sales below Wall Street forecasts as a tougheconomy and more discounting on women’s handbags by rivals hurt sales in North America.

Overall revenue in the second quarter rose 3.8 percent to $1.5 billion, missing Wall Street analyst projections for net sales of $1.6 billion, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

Sales at stores open at least a year in North America, still its biggest market by far, fell 2 percent during the quarter.

Net income in the quarter, which ended Dec. 29, was $352.8 million, or $1.23 per share, compared with $347.5 million, or $1.18, a year earlier. ”

“CSX Corp. (CSX) and Norfolk Southern Corp. (NSC), the two largest U.S. eastern railroads, topped analysts’ fourth-quarter profit estimates as gains in container cargoes helped counter sliding coal volumes.

Intermodal-container shipments, which can move via highway, ocean or rail, rose 2.8 percent at CSX and 3.2 percent at Norfolk Southern in the period, according to Association of American Railroads data. Coal slumped about 14 percent as utilities abandoned it for cheaper natural gas.

Yesterday’s earnings reports by CSX, Norfolk Southern and Kansas City Southern showed how the industry is adapting to declines in shipments of coal, which remains the biggest single product carried by the major railroads. Union Pacific Corp. (UNP), the biggest U.S. carrier, is set to report results tomorrow.

CSX and Norfolk Southern “put up good numbers in a very difficult environment, slightly better than expected,” said Peter Nesvold, a Jefferies Group Inc. analyst in New York. “These companies do a really good job redeploying assets in other parts of the network when things like coal are soft. It’s going to be difficult for them to grow earnings meaningfully until you start to see a rebound in coal.”

While the three companies all beat estimates, each posted profit declines from a year earlier. Norfolk Southern will face “continuing headwinds” from coal in 2013, Chief Marketing Officer Donald Seale said during a conference call.

Electricity Demand…”

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“United Technologies Corp.’s UTX +0.60% fourth-quarter profit jumped 55% as the industrial conglomerate benefited from gains on the sale of its legacy Hamilton Sundstrand’s Industrial businesses, though costs rose sharply.

The maker of Otis elevators, Pratt & Whitney aircraft engines and Carrier air-conditioning systems has posted improved profits recently, aided by its $16.5 billion acquisition of aircraft-component maker Goodrich Corp., which closed last year.

United Technologies reported a profit of $2.06 billion, or $2.26 a share, up from $1.33 billion, or $1.47 a share, a year earlier. The latest quarter included about $1.05 billion, net of tax, in gains on the sale of the Hamilton Sundstrand businesses. United Technologies’s earnings from continuing operations fell to $1.04 from $1.42 a share. Revenue was up 14% to $16.44 billion.

Analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters recently expected a per-share profit from continuing operations of $1.03 on revenue of $16.63 billion.

Revenue from Pratt & Whitney rose 12%, while profit shrank 30%. Revenue at the Otis unit edged down 0.2% as profit fell 9.4%. UTC Aerospace Systems, a new unit that includes Goodrich and Hamilton Sundstrand, saw its revenue more than double and its earnings rise 33%.

Total costs and expenses rose 18% to $14.79 billion.”

“INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — WellPoint Inc.’s fourth-quarter earnings jumped 38 percent compared to the final quarter of 2011, when the nation’s second largest health insurer incurred a big hit from its Medicare Advantage business.

But the Blue Cross Blue Shield insurer also said Wednesday it could make less this year than it did in 2012, as it prepares for expansion resulting from the health care overhaul and other growth opportunities.

The Indianapolis company earned $464.2 million, or $1.51 per share, in the three months that ended Dec. 31. That’s up from $335.3 million, or 96 cents per share, in the last quarter of 2011. Excluding the investment and tax settlement gains and other adjustments, earnings totaled $1.03 per share.

Operating revenue inched up less than 1 percent to $15.27 billion. That excludes investment gains.

Analysts expected, on average, earnings of 94 cents per share on $15.29 billion in revenue, according to FactSet. Analysts typically exclude investment gains from their estimates.

In the final quarter of 2011, WellPoint took a $50 million hit from its Medicare Advantage business, which involves privately run versions of the government’s Medicare program that covers the elderly and disabled people. The insurer had problems with a plan in Northern California that attracted more customers with a higher risk profile than it expected because a competitor left the market. That helped push quarterly earnings down 39 percent.

In the final quarter of 2012, the insurer’s performance got a lift from $243 million in investment gains and an income tax settlement.

WellPoint’s membership grew more than 5 percent to 36.1 million people, largely due to its recently completed, $4.46 billion acquisition of Medicaid coverage provider Amerigroup Corp. Medicaid is the state-federal program that provides health coverage for the needy and disabled people.

For the full year, WellPoint earned $2.7 billion, or $8.18 per share, on $60.73 billion in operating revenue….”

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“Unilever (UNA), the world’s second-largest consumer-goods maker, reported revenue growth that beat estimates for a third straight quarter, led by gains in North and South America and demand for personal-care products.

Sales excluding acquisitions and currency shifts rose 7.8 percent in the three months to Dec. 31, London- and Rotterdam- based Unilever said today, exceeding the 6.2 percent average estimate of 13 analysts polled by Bloomberg. The quantity of goods sold gained 4.8 percent, more than the 4 percent estimated by analysts and the biggest quarterly gain in two years.

“It was an excellent quarter for Unilever, continuing its run of high quality, consistently strong performance,” Andrew Wood, an analyst at Sanford C. Bernstein, said in a note. “While the lack of growth in foods and Europe remains a worry, the overall performance remains impressive.”

Unilever rose as much as 3 percent in Amsterdam trading, the most in three months. Sales growth of 12 percent in the Americas, which represent a third of the company’s 51.3 billion euros ($68.4 billion) in annual revenue, was more than double the estimate of analysts such as Alain-Sebastian Oberhuber at MainFirst Schweiz AG. The Anglo-Dutch company has been pushing brands including Magnum ice cream in emerging markets such as Indonesia and Brazilto offset slowing growth in other regions.

Unilever’s results put pressure on Danone (BN) and Nestle SA (NESN), which are both scheduled to report full-year results next month. The maker of Knorr soups said today it expects “difficult” economic conditions to persist this year.

Emerging Markets…”

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“Siemens AG (SIE)’s first-quarter profit declined on charges for delays in high-speed trains orders and a failed solar power project, adding to more than 1 billion euros ($1.3 billion) in predicted restructuring costs this year.

Net income from continuing operations at Europe’s largest engineering company slipped 1.4 percent to 1.3 billion euros in the three months through December, Munich-based Siemens said in a statement today. Costs relating to train delivery delays and energy projects topped 300 million euros in the fiscal first quarter. The stock declined as much as 1.4 percent.

Chief Executive Officer Peter Loescher needs to defend his strategic skills today as he faces thousands of investors at the annual shareholder meeting. The CEO, on his second five-year term, has come under pressure after most deals that he supervised soured, and a push into more environmentally friendly energy generation led to spiraling costs. Profitability last year dropped back to the levels when Loescher started in 2007, prompting a new program in November to cut costs.

“The unfortunate thing we’ve seen with Siemens over the past few years is that there’s a continued line of charges,” saidJames Stettler, a London-based Canaccord Genuity analyst who rates Siemens hold. “Investors tend to be a bit skeptical with Siemens, because you never know the underlying earnings as there’s such a volatility.”

Solar Charges…”

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