DOW JONES NEWSWIRES
Colgate-Palmolive Co.'s (CL) second-quarter earnings rose 14%
amid prior-year restructuring costs as well as higher margins
resulting from cost cutting and higher prices.
Major consumer-product manufacturers are still feeling sales
pressure, though commodity prices and foreign-exchange fluctuations
have eased. While some branded manufacturers are focusing on
lower-priced products to compete with private-label goods, Colgate
is considered less vulnerable because of products like its
toothpaste.
The company - whose products include its namesake toothpaste and
dish soap - reported a profit of $561.6 million, or $1.07 a share,
up from $493.8 million, or 92 cents a share, a year earlier. The
prior year included 6 cents in restructuring charges.
Revenue decreased 5.5% to $3.75 billion as volume fell 1.5%.
Organic sales - which exclude currency effects, acquisitions and
divestitures - rose 6%.
Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters most recently were looking
for earnings of $1.05 on revenue of $3.82 billion.
Gross margin rose to 58.8% from 56.5% as higher prices and cost
cutting more than offset foreign-exchange impacts and lower
volume.
Volume and sales rose 2.5% in North America, where Colgate gets
20% of its sales. In Latin America, home to 28% of its sales,
volume rose 2% mostly on gains in Brazil and Venezuela.
The company said it was comfortable with Street views for the
third quarter and year. Analysts recently were looking for 2009
earnings of $4.25 and revenue of $15.14 billion. For the third
quarter they projected $1.10 and $3.9 billion, respectively.
Shares closed at $75.85 on Wednesday and didn't trade
premarket.
-By Tess Stynes, Dow Jones Newswires; 212-416-2481;
tess.stynes@dowjones.com