Rockwell Collins 4Q Profit Drops 26% Amid Commercial Systems Woes
DOW JONES NEWSWIRES
Rockwell Collins Inc.'s (COL) fiscal fourth-quarter earnings fell 26% amid
restructuring charges in the last quarter as the company reported continued
weakness in its commercial-systems business.
The maker of communication and electronic systems for defense and commercial
use has been hurt by limp commercial jet-systems sales as business-jet demand
wanes, although increased government sales have helped to offset weakness.
Adding to the problems are repeated delays of Boeing Co.'s (BA) 787 Dreamliner,
which Rockwell supplies with avionics equipment. In response, Rockwell has been
cutting jobs and plans to close a California plant.
For the quarter ended Sept. 30, profit fell to $134 million, or 84 cents a
share, from $182 million, or $1.13 a share, a year earlier. Excluding
restructuring charges and a prior-year tax gain, earnings fell to 93 cents from
$1.05.
Revenue decreased 6.8% to $1.19 billion.
Analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters projected earnings of 87 cents on revenue
of $1.22 billion.
Commercial-systems revenue dropped 30% as profit was halved amid lower sales
volume. Government-system sales grew 17%, helped by acquisitions, while earnings
jumped 27%.
Shares in Rockwell Collins, which affirmed its fiscal-year guidance, closed
Monday at $50.78 and weren't active premarket. The stock, which hit a five-year
low in March, has risen 30% this year.
-By Joan E. Solsman and Mike Barris, Dow Jones Newswires; 212-416-2291;
joan.solsman@dowjones.com; mike.barris@dowjones.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
11-03-090817ET
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