Lockheed’s Net Income Jumps 27%; Raises 2005 Forecasts

Lockheed Martin Corp. said Tuesday that first-quarter profit rose 27% after margins widened in space and aircraft programs. The company raised its 2005 sales and earnings forecasts.

Net income climbed to $369 million, or 83 cents a share, from $291 million, or 65 cents, a year earlier, the Bethesda, Md.-based company said. Sales rose 1.7% to $8.5 billion, the smallest gain in three years.

Chief Executive Robert Stevens is improving efficiency and lowering costs to widen profit margins on programs including government satellites and military aircraft such as the C-130J. Lockheed also is putting more focus on winning work on government computer networks as the Defense Department considers cutting funding for the company’s F/A-22 fighter.

Shares of Lockheed rose 9 cents to $59.84 on the New York Stock Exchange. They’ve risen 7.7% this year.

The company was expected to earn 75 cents a share, the average estimate of analysts surveyed by Thomson First Call. Sales were expected to rise to $8.75 billion from $8.35 billion a year earlier, according to six analysts.

Lockheed raised its earnings forecast for the year to as much as $3.55 a share, from a January forecast of as much as $3.30. It increased the 2005 sales forecast to as much as $38 billion, from as much as $37.5 billion.

The increases reflect the expected effect of acquisitions made in the first quarter and the decision to delay the expensing of stock options from July 1 to Jan. 1. They also include an improved outlook for the space systems group.

Operating profit increased at all three main business groups in the first quarter. Sales rose at the systems and information technology group and space systems group, and declined at the aeronautics unit.

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Amex Profit Rises 19% on New Partnerships

American Express Co. said net income rose 19% to a record as the company attracted new customers through partnerships with banks including MBNA Corp.

First-quarter net income increased to $946 million, or 75 cents a share, from $794 million, or 61 cents, a year earlier. Revenue rose 10% to $7.57 billion as expenses rose 9% to $6.2 billion.

American Express is benefiting from an agreement it formed last year to allow MBNA, the biggest independent U.S. credit-card company, to issue American Express credit cards along with MasterCards and Visa cards.

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U.S. Steel’s Profit Soars; Revenue Increases 29%

U.S. Steel Corp., the biggest U.S. steelmaker, said first-quarter profit rose more than sevenfold as prices surged.

Net income rose to $455 million from $58 million a year earlier, Pittsburgh-based U.S. Steel said. Per-share profit rose to $3.48 after payment of preferred dividends from 47 cents. Sales rose 29% to $3.76 billion.

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Corning’s Net Income Is Boosted by Demand

Corning Inc., the world’s largest maker of fiber optic cable, reported that first-quarter profit rose more than fourfold on increased demand for telecommunications gear and said profit this period would exceed analysts’ estimates.

Net income rose to $249 million, or 17 cents a share, from $55 million, or 4 cents, a year earlier, the Corning, N.Y.-based company said. Sales increased 24% to $1.05 billion. There was a 39% increase in sales of glass used in liquid-crystal display computer and TV screens.

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DuPont Earnings Surge 45% on Higher Prices

DuPont Co., the second-largest U.S. chemical maker, said first-quarter profit surged 45% as it boosted prices for plastics and pigments and improved sales of seeds and herbicides.

Net income climbed to $967 million, or 96 cents a share, from $668 million, or 66 cents, Wilmington, Del.-based DuPont said. Revenue fell 4.6% to $7.83 billion after the sale of a business a year earlier.

The company raised its quarterly dividend for the first time in seven years to 37 cents a share from 35 cents.