Fluor Earnings Up 4% for Quarter to $40.8 Million : Finance: The Irvine engineering and construction firm says growth came principally in the core subsidiary, Fluor Daniel. But it expects future growth to be ‘somewhat uneven.’

Fluor Corp. reported Thursday that earnings for its fiscal third quarter rose 4% to $40.8 million, and its top executive warned that prospects for steady growth in the coming quarters appear “somewhat uneven.”

The earnings for the quarter ended July 31 amounted to 50 cents a share, compared to earnings of $39.3 million, or 48 cents a share, last year. Revenue for the worldwide engineering and construction firm grew 6% to $1.8 billion for the third quarter from $1.7 billion last year.

Fluor stock closed Thursday at $43.87 a share, down 25 cents, in trading on the New York Stock Exchange.

Les McCraw, chairman of the Irvine-based engineering giant, said that the earnings growth came principally in the core subsidiary, Fluor Daniel, because that unit has been getting more work. But McCraw said he expects future business growth to be “somewhat uneven.”

“Concern over U.S. economic policies has slowed domestic capital spending in some industries,” he said. “Both political and economic uncertainty in individual geographic regions are having a damaging effect on other businesses.”

He said, however, that several “mega-projects”--most of them outside the United States--are on the boards and could present major opportunities for Fluor. Because they are so big, these projects will take time to develop, he said.

Net earnings for the first nine months of the fiscal year were $118.5 million, or $1.44 a share, up 82% from $65.2 million, or 80 cents a share, last year. The 1992 figure was distorted somewhat by a one-time charge of $32.9 million, or 40 cents a share, related to adoption of an accounting rule pertaining to retirement benefits.

Revenue increased 19% to $5.7 billion for the period from $4.8 billion for the same period last year.