Wal-Mart Stores Inc.: The giant retailer reported a 13.4 percent increase in fourth-quarter profits, beating Wall Street estimates, but also offered a cautious – and disappointing – profit outlook Tuesday as it struggles with higher interest expenses resulting from international acquisitions. Wal-Mart said net income rose to $3.6 billion, or 86 cents per share, for the quarter ended Jan. 31 from $3.2 billion, or 75 cents per share, a year earlier. Minus 2 cents per share from a one-time tax benefit, it earned just above the 83 cents per share projected by analysts surveyed by Thomson Financial. The retailer forecast first-quarter earnings per share between 58 and 62 cents and said it expected to earn $2.88 to $2.95 for fiscal 2007, which ends next Jan. 31. Analysts surveyed by Thomson Financial projected per-share earnings of 62 cents in the first quarter and $2.98 for the year.
Home Depot Inc.: The home-improvement retailer said fourth- quarter profit rose 23 percent, the biggest gain in two years, on sales of refrigerators, washing machines and kitchen cabinets. Net income at the world’s largest home-improvement retailer climbed to $1.29 billion, or 60 cents a share, exceeding analysts’ estimates. A year earlier, profit was $1.04 billion, or 47 cents. Sales increased 16 percent to $19.5 billion, Atlanta-based Home Depot said Tuesday.
US Airways Group Inc.: The airline blamed high fuel prices for its quarter-billion-dollar loss in the fourth quarter. But the company’s chief executive said the task of merging US Airways and America West was going smoothly, and he predicted the nation’s fifth-largest carrier would be profitable on an operating basis in 2006. The loss for the quarter ended in December was $261 million, compared with $69 million a year earlier. However, the per-share loss narrowed to $3.26 from $4.66, as the latest period had a greater number of shares outstanding. Excluding certain items, the company reported a fourth- quarter loss of $138 million, or $1.72 per share, versus an adjusted net loss of $58 million, or $3.89 per share, in the fourth quarter of 2004. Revenue rose to $2.58 billion from $697 million, while operating expenses climbed to $2.77 billion from $748 million.
Health Grades Inc.: The Lakewood-based health-care information provider announced Tuesday that its revenue increased by 43 percent for the year ending Dec. 31. The company, which provides online reviews and profiles of doctors, hospitals and nursing homes, reported $20.8 million in revenue, up from $14.5 million for 2004. Net income also rose, increasing from $1.7 million in 2004 to $4.1 million in 2005.
