Costly Restructuring : Honeywell’s 3-Month Loss Is $483 Million

Honeywell Inc., the Minneapolis electronics giant that has been streamlining its operations for the last two years, Friday reported a fourth-quarter loss of $483 million, largely due to charges stemming from the corporate overhaul.

The company said quarterly sales slipped to $1.93 billion, down 3% from a year earlier, when it turned a profit of $86.1 million.

In Friday’s trading on the New York Stock Exchange, Honeywell shares fell $2.125 to $64.875. The stock had risen $3 on Thursday on rumors that computer giant Unisys might be interested in buying Honeywell.

The company said $399 million of the fourth-quarter loss was the result of one-time charges, including $158 million for income tax accounting changes and $126 million for discontinued lines. Another $115-million charge stemmed from severance packages for laid-off workers and related streamlining moves.

For the full year, the company lost $435 million, contrasted with a profit of $254 million in 1987. Revenue for 1988 totaled $7.1 billion, up nearly 6%.

Honeywell Chairman and Chief Executive James J. Renier said the company is poised for improvement this year. “Honeywell is emerging from a difficult 1988 better positioned to concentrate on the potential of our high market share businesses. We are looking forward to a year of significant improvement in 1989,” Renier said.

Honeywell, which manufactures electronic control systems for the home, space, industrial and defense markets, began its reorganization in 1986 when it sold a controlling stake in its computer business to Groupe Bull of France and bought Sperry Defense Systems from Unisys Corp. for $1.03 billion.