EARNINGS
Other earnings, excluding one-time gains and charges unless noted:
* Autodesk Inc.’s fiscal fourth-quarter earnings fell 3% to $26.7 million, or 54 cents a share, in line with forecasts, as the software maker’s revenue rose 4% to $189.1 million. Demand slackened for Autodesk’s flagship AutoCAD product as it prepared to launch a new version.
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Cablevision Systems Corp. reported a loss of $142.9 million, or $1.22 a share, in the first quarter, more than the $1.20-a-share loss analysts expected. The cable television operator had net income of $220.6 million, or $1.53 a share, a year ago. Cash flow--a measure of the performance of companies with heavy capital investments--rose 4.5% on a pro forma basis on higher subscriber revenue. Revenue jumped 54% to $977 million from $634 million.
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Fleetwood Enterprises Inc., a leading producer of manufactured housing and recreational vehicles, said its third-quarter earnings rose to $21.3 million, or 59 cents a share, up from $21.1 million, or 57 cents, a year ago. Fleetwood said profit rose in both its core businesses. Revenue grew 13% to $804.4 million.
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Herbalife International Inc.’s fourth-quarter earnings rose 2% to $15.1 million, or 46 cents a share, from $14.8 million, or 47 cents, excluding a charge of $3.8 million in connection with increased reserves for its operations in Russia. Sales rose 5% to $445.5 million.
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Medtronic Inc., the world’s largest pacemaker company, said its profit rose 25% to $213.1 million, or 36 cents a share, in the fiscal third quarter, a penny below estimates. Revenue rose 29% to $1.04 billion.
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Merisel Inc., a El Segundo-based distributor of computer products, reported a sharp drop in fourth-quarter net income to $2.16 million, or 3 cents a share, from $5.76 million, or 14 cents, a year ago, excluding one-time charges. Sales rose 13% to $1.21 billion. The company blamed the weak results in part on a drop in margins amid intense price competition and on changes in vendor terms.
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Tandy Corp. said its operating profit rose 10% in the fourth quarter to $106.1 million, or $1.02 a share, a penny higher than expectations, on higher sales of cellular phones and services at its RadioShack chain. Revenue rose 4.4% to $1.21 billion, excluding results of divested retail businesses.
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Santa Barbara-based Miravant Medical Technologies, a money-losing drug maker that’s developing a treatment for age-related blindness, said it obtained $41.5 million in financing from drug maker Pharmacia & Upjohn Inc. Pharmacia bought 1.14 million Miravant shares for $19 million, or $16.71 a share, boosting Pharmacia’s stake to 11%, said a Miravant spokesman. The Swedish-U.S. drug maker also extended Miravant a secured line of credit of up to $22.5 million.
