Company Earnings - Page 16

AP - Barnes & Noble Inc., the nation's largest bookseller, reported on Thursday a slight increase in fourth-quarter profit that missed Wall Street expectations. It also forecast a loss for the first quarter. More Info...  

AP - The foodmaker General Mills Inc. said on Thursday that its third-quarter profit rose 9 percent as increased sales helped offset rising prices for ingredients, and the company raised its guidance for the year. More Info...  

AP - ConAgra Foods Inc. earned $192.6 million in the third quarter despite a massive recall of all of its peanut butter products after they were linked to a salmonella outbreak, the company reported Thursday. More Info...  

AP - A Japanese court convicted four former executives of disgraced dot-com company Livedoor of inflating earnings reports Thursday in a scandal that destroyed one of the country's highest-flying Internet startups.

BusinessWeek Online - Package delivery company FedEx said Mar. 21 that it's been struggling to grow profits during recent months. Fuel costs cut into profits, while snowstorms made it tougher for trucks to deliver packages. And as the U.S. economy slowed, customers who might have insisted on shipping everything overnight express during easier years downgraded to less expensive services. More Info...  

Earnings News

AP - A Japanese court on Thursday sentenced the former chief financial officer of scandal-tainted dot-com company Livedoor to 20 months in prison for inflating earnings reports.

AP - FedEx Corp. reported a 2 percent drop in third-quarter earnings Wednesday, blaming the decline largely on an economic slowdown that tested the company's ability to quickly adjust costs. The shipping company said it also will have to struggle to keep up with a long-range goal of 10 percent to 15 percent growth a year in per share earnings.

AP - Morgan Stanley Inc., the second-biggest investment bank on Wall Street, said Wednesday its fiscal first-quarter profit soared 69 percent on robust trading and strong advisory fees from stock and bond underwriting.

Reuters - Morgan Stanley posted a 60 percent jump in quarterly earnings on Wednesday, beating expectations with record results boosted by strong debt and equity trading, and its shares gained 7 percent.

AP - Business software maker Oracle Corp. has a tough act to follow as it tackles the biggest quarter of its fiscal year.

AP - Adobe Systems Inc. executives are raising profit guidance after the company easily exceeded Wall Street expectations with a 37 percent surge in first-quarter profit.

Reuters - Package delivery company FedEx Corp. on Wednesday reported a dip in profit, citing a slower economic environment, lower fuel surcharges and severe winter storms, but came in above market expectations.

FT.com - Wall Street stocks were set for a mixed start on Wednesday as investors awaiting the Federal Reserve statement on interest rates were buoyed by strong earnings reports from Oracle (NASDAQ:ORCL) and Morgan Stanley (AMEX:MWD). More Info...  

Earnings News

AP - Oracle Corp.'s fiscal third-quarter profit climbed 35 percent amid surprisingly strong sales growth that provided the business software maker with an additional boost as it heads into its busiest time of the year.

AP - Adobe Systems Inc. reported flat first-quarter sales but easily exceeded Wall Street expectations with a 37 percent surge in profit, prompting bullish executives to raise guidance Tuesday as the software company prepares its biggest-ever product launch.

Reuters - Business software maker Oracle Corp. posted quarterly profit and revenue on Tuesday that topped Wall Street forecasts on strong sales of new software applications, lifting its shares by 3 percent.

Reuters - Software maker Adobe Systems Inc. posted on Tuesday a rise in quarterly net profit despite declining sales ahead of an upgrade to its Creative Suite software bundle for Web, video and mobile device content.

AP - Oil services firm Halliburton Co. on Tuesday said it expects first-quarter earnings below Wall Street estimates as its energy services group struggles with decreased drilling and completion activities in Canada and the northern United States. More Info...  

Earnings News

AP - Carnival Corp., the world's largest cruise group, reported a 13 percent rise Friday in its first-quarter profit on increased cruise capacity and strong yields from European brands that offset pricing weakness in the Caribbean. The company also reported a significant increase in future Caribbean bookings.

AP - Carnival Corp., the world's largest cruise group, reported a 13 percent rise Friday in its first-quarter profit on increased cruise capacity and strong yields from European brands that offset pricing weakness in the Caribbean. The company also reported a significant increase in future Caribbean bookings.