Eastman Kodak Co. on Monday reported a nearly fourfold increase in third-quarter net income, helped by a gain from the sale of the company's Remote Sensing Systems operation to ITT Industries.
The maker of traditional and digital imaging products said net income for the third quarter was $479 million, or $1.67 per share, including a gain of $1.51 per share from the asset sale and a charge of 63 cents per share related to cost reductions. Excluding those items, the company reported net income of 79 cents per share, handily beating the estimate of 72 cents per share carried by analysts surveyed by Thomson First Call. Kodak earned $122 million, or 42 cents a share, in the year-ago quarter.
Kodak said revenue for the quarter rose 1 percent, to $3.36 billion, as increased demand for its digital products continued to offset declining sales of some traditional products and services. Revenue from digital products rose 39% in the third quarter, offsetting a decline of 13% in traditional product revenue. Excluding foreign exchange translation, overall sales for the quarter fell 2 percent.
Kodak reaffirmed its guidance for full-year earnings, excluding certain accounting- and tax-related items, of $2.49 to $2.69 per share. Analysts expect the company to report full-year earnings of $2.52 per share.
President and chief operating officer Antonio M. Perez said the company now expects that demand for consumer film industrywide will decline by about 20% worldwide in 2005, with U.S. demand declining as much as 30%.
