Beam Q3 Profit Down, Yet Beats Consensus

(RTTNews) - Beam Inc.'s (BEAM) third-quarter 2013 net income slipped 11.9% to $84.8 million, from $96.2 million in the prior-year quarter. Earnings per share from continuing operations were $0.52, lower than $0.61 a year ago. The recent results were impacted by a net charge of 7 cents per share related to items including early extinguishment of debt and organizational streamlining.

Excluding charges/gains, earnings per share from continuing operations totaled $0.59, versus $0.63 a year ago, reflecting the lower sales and the timing of raw materials-related costs, partly offset by the benefit of a lower effective tax rate. On average, 13 analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expected earnings per share of $0.58 for the quarter. Analysts' estimates typically exclude one-time items.

Net sales of $598.7 million for the third quarter were lower by 4% on a reported and comparable basis. Sales were adversely impacted an estimated 7 points by the timing of shipments in the U.S., Australia and emerging markets, along with a challenging comparison in India. Analysts estimated revenues of $623.11 million for the quarter.