|
Caterpillar misses 1Q mark
|
 |
April 17, 2001: 10:48 a.m. ET
Heavy equipment maker still comfortable with '01 guidance despite global woes
|
NEW YORK (CNNfn) - Heavy equipment maker Caterpillar Inc. said Tuesday first-quarter earnings dropped sharply as it missed Wall Street forecasts.
The company earned $162 million, or 47 cents a share, down from 73 cents a share a year earlier. Analysts surveyed by earnings tracker First Call had forecast 48 cents a share for the latest period.
The statement from Caterpillar (CAT: down $1.00 to $45.75, Research, Estimates) said the lower earnings still were in line with its expectations and that it remains comfortable with its guidance for full-year earnings. First Call's forecast calls for 2001 earnings per share of $2.64 for the year, down from $3.02 in 2000.
Caterpillar is one of four of the 30 components of the Dow Jones industrial average that reported report results Tuesday morning before the market open, and the only one of the seven components to report results for the period that did not top or match forecasts.
Still, unlike some other companies that have lowered estimates for profits going forward or said they could no longer give guidance for the year, Caterpillar officials say they still see improvement ahead, although it still expects to end the year with profits 5-to-10 percent below 2000 results.
"While a number of business sectors such as truck engines and metals mining remain weak, we're encouraged to see an upturn in coal mining, heavy construction and oil and gas, and the ongoing strength of electric power and financial services," said a statement from Glen Barton, its chairman. "Our diversity continues to serve us well in these times of global economic challenge."
Revenue slipped 2 percent to $4.8 billion in the quarter, hurt by both the strong value of the dollar as well as decreased volumes. Its financial services business was an exception, with revenue from that segment rising 19 percent. First Call's forecast for full-year revenue stands at $19.6 billion, down from $20.2 billion it posted in 2000. 
|
|
|
|
|
 |
|
