3M Edges Wall Street Estimates
3M Co. issued its fourth-quarter results Thursday, posting a 3 percent increase in profit over 2010's final three months. Based in Maplewood, Minnesota, the company said it earned $954 million, or $1.35 a share, up from $928 million, $1.28 a share, in the same period a year ago. Overall revenue, meanwhile rose 6 percent on a year-to-year basis to $7.09 billion. The results outpaced the projections of analysts in a recent FactSet survey, who were expecting per share earnings of $1.31.
Among its divisions, 3M said sales growth was strongest at its industrial and transportation unit, with sales rising 14 percent year-to-year. The company's consumer and office supplies unit, which makes its familiar Scotch tape, Post-It notes and other products, also experienced solid growth, with sales up 6 percent. Sales declined, however, at 3M's electronics, communications and displays division, mostly due to declining demand for the film used in LCD televisions.
For 2011 as a whole, 3M's net income totaled $4.28 billion, or $5.96 per share, slightly ahead of its 2010 earnings of $4.09 billion, or $5.63 a share. Looking ahead, the company expects to earn between $6.25 and $6.50 a share in the current quarter, pretty much in line with analysts predictions for guidance of $6.33 per share.
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