Starbucks earnings rise 27 percent, top estimates

Starbucks Corp. reported Wednesday that its fiscal second-quarter earnings rose 27 percent, citing brisk customer demand for its coffee drinks and a strong showing of its spring line of green tea beverages.

For the 13 weeks ended April 2, the coffee seller said it has profit of $127 million, or 16 cents per share, up from $100 million, or 12 cents a share, in the same period a year earlier. Revenue for the latest quarter increased to $1.89 billion million, up from $1.5 billion last year.

The results, released after the market closed, beat the consensus forecast of analysts surveyed by Thomson Financial, which was 14 cents per share on revenue of $1.87 billion.

Shares of Starbucks closed at $37.35 on the Nasdaq Stock Market on Wednesday, down 47 cents or 1.24 percent, then fell another 46 cents in after-hours trading to $36.89. The stock has traded in a 52-week range of $22.70 to $39.50.

As of April 30, Starbucks had a worldwide total of 11,377 stores in 37 countries. It opened 755 stores in the United States during the 30 weeks ending April 30, and 381 stores overseas.

•Time Warner Inc. reported a higher first-quarter profit Wednesday, driven by strong results in cable TV and a gain from selling its book group, but investors were disappointed by another slump at AOL.

Profit at the New York-based media conglomerate jumped nearly 60 percent to $1.46 billion, or 32 cents a share, in the January-March period from $915 million, or 19 cents per share a year ago, as revenues rose 1 percent to $10.46 billion.

•Procter & Gamble Co. said Wednesday that its third-quarter profit jumped 37 percent, but the consumer products company’s stock slid on weaker than expected sales figures and a fourth-quarter earnings forecast that was below Wall Street projections.

The maker of Tide detergent, Pampers diapers and Crest toothpaste earned $2.21 billion, or 63 cents a share, for the quarter ended March 31, compared with $1.61 billion, or 59 cents per share, a year ago. Revenue rose 21 percent to $17.3 billion from $14.3 billion a year ago, helped by the company’s acquisition of Gillette Co. last year.

The earnings were above the 61 cents expected by analysts surveyed by Thomson Financial but the revenue was below their estimate of $17.6 billion.

•Life insurance and investment giant Prudential Financial Inc. on Wednesday reported first-quarter profit declined 11.9 percent from a year ago, as income fell from its investment division.

Quarterly financial services profit was $675 million, or $1.38 a share, compared with $766 million, or $1.49, for the same period in 2005.

Total quarterly revenue rose 9.5 percent to $6.13 billion from $5.6 billion a year earlier.