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Woodward Governor 2Q Profit Falls But Beats Street

The Associated Press

FORT COLLINS, Colo. (AP) — Woodward Governor Co., which makes energy control systems for aircraft, said Wednesday that its second-quarter profit fell 38 percent because of restructuring charges, but results still topped Wall Street expectations and the company raised the low end of its 2009 profit guidance slightly.

Shares jumped $1.48, or nearly 10 percent, to $16.48 in aftermarket trading, having closed earlier up 82 cents, or 5.8 percent, at $15.

The company said earnings slid to $18.5 million, or 27 cents per share, during the quarter that ended March 31, from $29.7 million, or 43 cents per share, during the same period last year. Excluding restructuring charges of $16.6 million, the company would have earned 43 cents per share in the latest period.

Revenue rose 9 percent to $334.7 million, from $305.8 million a year ago.

Analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters expected a profit of 34 cents per share on revenue of $327.8 million. Analysts generally don't include one-time items in their estimates.

The company said sales would have fallen 4 percent counting operations it was running last year, and if not for the impact of foreign currency exchange. On that same basis, profits would have been about the same year-over-year.

The company's Turbine Systems segment recorded a profit of $34.8 million, up 12 percent from a year ago, as revenue rose 7 percent to $157.8 million. Profit in its Engine Systems segment fell 41 percent to $7.7 million, as sales fell 27 percent to $92.5 million.

The company said it now expects to report profit of $1.45 to $1.65 per share for the full year, not counting some special charges. The low end of that range is a nickel higher than the $1.40 to $1.65 per sahre the company predicted on Feb. 27. Its revenue outlook stayed the same at $1.4 billion to $1.5 billion.

Analysts are expecting a profit of $1.43 per share on revenue of $1.47 billion.