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Company Earnings • Aon Q4 profit rises, but margin pressures persist
(Reuters)
Reuters - Aon Corp posted a higher quarterly profit that narrowly beat market estimates, but the world's largest insurance broker continued to face margin pressures in its Aon Hewitt segment for the second-straight quarter.
• Truck maker Volvo's Q4 profit rockets
(AP)
AP - Swedish truck maker AB Volvo recorded a 46 percent rise in fourth-quarter profits after a surge in sales it described as the best it has seen in more than two decades.
• Japan's Panasonic projects record annual net loss
(AP)
AP - Panasonic on Friday nearly doubled its projected net loss for the fiscal year to a record 780 billion yen ($10.2 billion) amid weak TV and mobile phone sales and ongoing restructuring costs after acquiring smaller Sanyo Electronics Co.
• Broadband gives BT a Q3 profit boost
(AP)
AP - A strong performance by the broadband business helped British telecommunications company BT PLC report a 41 percent increase in net profit in the three months ending Dec. 31.
• BT posts solid earnings and raises guidance
(Reuters)
Reuters - Lower regulatory charges, cost cuts and strong demand for a wide range of services enabled Britain's BT to post solid third-quarter core earnings on Friday and lift aspects of its forecasts.
• Panasonic headed for record $10 billion annual loss
(Reuters)
Reuters - Japan's Panasonic Corp warned of a record annual $10.2 billion net loss, joining beleaguered rivals Sony and Sharp in a sea of red ink as they struggle to fix their broken TV businesses and show they have not lost their way.
• Wynn's 4th-qtr profit up 67 pct as revenue climbs
(AP)
AP - Wynn Resorts Ltd. said Thursday that revenue growth in its Macau and Las Vegas casinos and a tax benefit helped drive profit up 67 percent in the last three months of 2011.
• Homebuilders see stable housing market ahead
(AP)
AP - The CEOs of some of the nation's biggest homebuilding companies said Thursday that they feel the housing market has stabilized.
• Starwood 4Q profit falls, but tops Street's view
(AP)
</a>AP - Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide Inc.'s fourth-quarter profit dropped 51 percent on impairment charges and other items, but its adjusted results beat analysts' expectations.
• Kellogg fourth-quarter net income jumps
(AP)
AP - Kellogg Co. is showing signs of easing its way out of a two-year slump. The cereal maker reported Thursday that its net income rose 23 percent on revenue gains.
• Sunoco has pretax 4Q loss, CEO stepping down
(AP)
AP - Sunoco Inc. said Thursday its CEO will step down on March 1 as the company exits the refining business to focus on its pipelines and retail gas stations.
• Dow Chemical posts 4Q loss on charge
(AP)
AP - The Dow Chemical Co. is feeling the impact of the slowing European economy, and seeing some weakness in North America as well. <br clear="all"/>
• MasterCard takes $495M charge to cover fee suit
(AP)
AP - MasterCard Inc. on Thursday said it recorded a $495 million charge in its fourth quarter to cover potential losses related to a lawsuit brought by retailers over the fees they pay on credit card transactions.
• Summary Box: Tough times ahead for drugmakers
(AP)
AP - NEW NORMAL: Big drugmakers can no longer churn out drugs for the masses and double-digit profit increases. Now, they're having to develop drugs for smaller patient groups and hold up the bottom line with relentless cost-cutting.
• Drugmakers singing same song: 2012 will be tough
(AP)
AP - For drugmakers, the golden era of the 1990s and early part of the last decade, when they seemed to effortlessly churn out new multibillion-dollar pills for the masses along with double-digit quarterly profit increases, is not even in the rearview mirror any more.
• Merck & Co. swings to Q4 profit on lower charges
(AP)
AP - Merck & Co. swung to a fourth-quarter profit because of lower restructuring and other charges and higher sales of most of its key drugs.
• Summary Box: AstraZeneca to cut 7,300 jobs
(AP)
AP - JOB CUTS: Drugmaker AstraZeneca PLC said it will cut another 7,300 jobs as it warned Thursday of a tough year ahead, due to government spending cuts on health care and stiff competition.
• Summary Box: Electrolux's 4th-qtr profit drops
(AP)
AP - CHALLENGING ENVIRONMENT: Swedish appliance maker Electrolux AB said its fourth-quarter profit shrank as increasing competition and weak demand limit its ability to raise prices, while raw material costs increase.
• Summary Box: Raw materials costs hurt Unilever
(AP)
AP - HIGH COSTS: Unilever PLC, the consumer-goods maker behind brands including Lipton tea, Dove soap and Ben & Jerry's ice cream, struggled in 2011 to pass on higher raw material costs to cash-strapped consumers.
• Summary Box: Merck swings to profit in 4th quarter
(AP)
AP - BACK IN BLACK: Higher sales of most key drugs and lower charges push Merck & Co. back to a fourth-quarter profit. Adjusted income of $2.98 billion, or 97 cents a share, beat expectations, but sales were a tad short.
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