Procter & Gamble Co. said its third-quarter profit rose 1.7%
as expenses fell, though sales also dropped slightly.
Core earnings topped analysts' expectations, but the company
cuts its earnings outlook for the year.
The company--which produces Pampers diapers and Tide detergent,
among several other big-name consumer products brands--has again
started to focus more on higher-priced premium offerings and core
household and personal-care products under the leadership of A.G.
Lafley, who's in his second go-round as chief executive.
As part of this strategy, P&G plans a new Gillette razor,
called ProGlide FlexBall, that features ball-hinge that allows the
blade to pivot, The Wall Street Journal reported last week. Earlier
this month, the company agreed to sell a large part of its pet
foods business to Mars Inc. for $2.9 billion, a deal expected to
close in the second half of this year.
"We're operating in a slow-growth, highly competitive
environment, which places even greater importance on strong
innovation and productivity improvement," Chief Executive A.G.
Lafley said.
For the latest quarter, P&G reported a profit of $2.61
billion, or 90 cents a share, up from $2.57 billion, or 88 cents a
share, a year earlier. Excluding special items such as
restructuring expenses, core earnings rose to $1.04 a share from 99
cents.
Sales fell slightly to $20.56 billion. Organic sales, which
exclude impacts from currency movements and acquisitions and
divestitures, rose 3%.
Analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters had expected $1.01 a share
in earnings and $20.68 billion in revenue.
Selling, general and administrative expenses fell 5.1% to $6.5
billion.
The company said it expects core earnings growth for the year of
3% to 5%, down from its previous call for 5% to 7%.
Write to Michael Calia at michael.calia@wsj.com
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