| 0 |
WSJ891102-0001
= 891102
891102-0001.
Ralston Profit
@ Declined 47%
@ In 4th Quarter
@ ---
@ By Richard Gibson
@ Staff Reporter of The Wall Street Journal
11/02/89t35
WALL STREET JOURNAL (J)
RAL
EARNINGS (ERN)
FOOD PRODUCTS (FOD)
| 1 |
Ralston Purina Co.
reportede1
a
47%
declinee1991
in
fourth-quartert38
earningse2018
,
reflectinge2
restructuring
costse2033
as well as a more difficult pet food market.
| 2 |
The
St. Louis
company
earnede3
$45.2 million
, or
65 cents
a share, compared with
$84.9 million
, or
$1.24
a share,
a year earliert39
.
| 3 |
Salese2044
ins2049
the latest periodt42
were
$1.76 billion
, a
13%
increasee1992
from
last yeart43
's
$1.55 billion
.
| 4 |
Fors2066
the yeart41
endede5
Sept. 30t40
,
Ralston
earnede6
$422.5 million
, or
$6.44
a share, up
8.9%
from
$387.8 million
, or
$5.63
a share.
| 5 |
This yeart50
's
resultse1993
included a
gaine1994
of
$70.2 million
on the
disposale8
of seafood operations.
| 6 |
Salese1995
fors2085
the full yeart44
were
$6.6 billion
, up
13%
from
$5.8 billion
.
| 7 |
Ralston
saide10
its restructuring
costse1999
includee11
the
phase-oute1996
of a battery facility in
Greenville
,
N.C.
, the
recentt45
closinge1997
of a Hostess cake bakery in
Cincinnati
and a
reductione1998
in staff throughout the company.
| 8 |
The battery plant, which
makese13
rechargeable nickel cadmium and carbon zinc products, will be
closede14
over
the next year or sot46
, a spokesman
saide2000
.
| 9 |
Ralston
attributede15
its
fourth-quartert47
slumpe2001
partly to higher
costse2003
of ingredients in the pet food business as well as competitive
pressurese2002
, which
requirede18
higher advertising
spendinge2004
.
| 10 |
Fors2159
the yeart48
, pet food volume was
flate2154
, the company
saide19
.
| 11 |
Its cereal division
realizede20
higher operating
profite2005
ons2176
volume
increasese21
, but also
spente2006
more on
promotione24
.
| 12 |
The Continental Baking business
benefitede26
from higher margins on bread and on
increasede2007
cake
salese2008
, it
addede30
.
| 13 |
Ralston
saide31
its Eveready battery unit was
hurte32
by
continuinge33
economic
problemse2009
in
South America
.
| 14 |
Ralston
shares
closede34
yesterdayt49
at
$80.50
, off
$1
, in
New York Stock Exchange
composite trading.
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