Brady Issues 2010 Outlook In Range Of Street View

MILWAUKEE (AP) — Brady Corp., which makes labels, signs and safety devices, said Friday it expects its fiscal 2010 earnings per share to be within range of Wall Street expectations.

The company said it expects per-share earnings of $1.60 to $1.80, excluding one-time items.

Analysts, who typically exclude one-time items, polled by Thomson Reuters anticipate, on average, $1.78 a share.

"We expect that the challenges of the global recession will continue into the first half of fiscal 2010," a spokesman said.

The company's guidance assumes that sales will continue at or near current levels through the first half of the fiscal year, followed by modest growth in the second half of the fiscal year, which ends next July, the company said.

Brady also reported that its fiscal 2009 fourth-quarter profit fell 44 percent as weak sales in Europe and the Americas offset lower costs.

In morning trading, shares dropped $2.39, or 7.2 percent, to $30.67.