Despite Charges, Chrysler Results Better Than Expected
Buoyed by strong sales of light trucks, Chrysler Corp. on Tuesday reported better-than-expected fourth-quarter earnings, but special charges held the auto maker back from its best-ever full-year profit.
Detroit’s No. 3 auto maker posted net income of $807 million, or $1.12 per share, during the fourth quarter after $279 million in charges. Excluding those charges, operating earnings were a record $1.09 billion, or $1.51 a share. In the fourth quarter of 1995, Chrysler posted a profit of $1.04 billion, or $1.33 a share.
The results beat analysts’ average estimate of $1.43 a share fully diluted, which assumes all convertible securities are changed into common stock.
Chrysler, which was fighting for its life five years ago, plans to reward its 79,000 U.S. employees handsomely for the 1996 results. It said they will receive average profit-sharing checks of $7,900 in February--more than double the $3,200 they received last year.
Wall Street also cheered the results. Chrysler’s stock rose $1.50 a share to close at $36 on the New York Stock Exchange.
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Lockheed Martin Corp. said fourth-quarter profit rose 4%, reflecting the April acquisition of most of Loral Corp.
The world’s largest aerospace and defense company said profit from operations rose to $323 million, or $1.74 a share, from net income of $311 million, or $1.56 a share, in the year-ago quarter.
The results were a penny more than analysts’ expectations based on fully diluted per-share results. Lockheed Martin, which earned $1.47 per fully diluted share, was expected to earn $1.46.
At a Glance:
Exxon Corp. and Shell Oil Co.’s fourth-quarter earnings surged on the strength of higher oil and natural gas prices. Exxon said profit from operations rose 31% to $2.09 billion, or $1.67 a share, from $1.59 billion, or $1.28 a share, in the year-ago quarter. Shell profit from operations for the Houston-based unit of the Royal Dutch/Shell Group rose 88% to a record $537 million from $286 million last year. But Enron Corp. posted lower earnings despite the better commodity prices. Enron said profit fell to $113 million, or 46 cents a share, compared with $120 million, or 49 cents, a year ago.
