Cooper Industries PLC's Fourth-Quarter Earnings Rose 13% Aided by a Increase in Incoome

Cooper Industries PLC's (CBE) fourth-quarter earnings rose 13%, aided by a sharp increase in income from a joint venture with Danaher Corp. (DHR) that manufacturers hand tools. Cooper, which makes safety lighting, circuit breakers, wiring devices and components for electric-power transmission, topped analysts' expectations for the quarter and offered a 2012 outlook largely in line with expectations. Cooper is counting on sales growth from products introduced in recent years to help offset slowing demand from Europe and developing overseas markets. "I feel really good about the products coming out," Chairman and Chief Executive Kirk Hachigian said during a conference call Tuesday with analysts. Cooper's sales continue to be hampered by soft demand from the construction sector, though Hachigian said conditions in construction aren't likely to deteriorate further in 2012. "I don't see anything getting worse," Hachigian said. "I see housing getting better. But it's too early to predict a rebound in nonresidential construction." Cooper's fourth-quarter profit from its Apex Tool Group venture with Danaher rose 78% from a year earlier to $21.9 million. Cooper attributed the improvement to cost-saving synergies and strong sales growth overseas. The two companies formed Apex in 2010 to combine several well-known consumer and professional brands of tools, including Cooper's Crescent wrenches, Wiss tin snips, Lufkin tape measures and Plumb hammers, as well as Danaher's Matco and Armstrong professional lines of hand tools. Danaher and Cooper each have a 50% stake in Apex. In Cooper's primary businesses groups, operating profit from the safety-and-energy-products group rose 4.5% from a year earlier to $113.8 million while revenue increased 9.7% to $742.4 million. Electrical products, Cooper's other major business group, reported a 4.1% increase in operating profit to $83.7 million as revenue climbed 8.1% to $630.7 million. Hachigian said Cooper remains on the hunt for acquisitions after completing seven deals in 2011 costing $305 million. "We're very motivated" to acquire businesses, Hachigian said. "We've got a good pipeline of deals we're looking at." For the quarter ended Dec. 31, Cooper reported a profit of $159.9 million, or $1 a share, up from $141.9 million, or 85 cents a share, a year earlier. Revenue increased 9% to $1.37 billion. Analysts had anticipated earnings of 95 cents a share on revenue of $1.35 billion. For the first quarter, the Dublin-based company forecast earnings per share of 97 cents to $1.01 on revenue growth of 4% to 6%. Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expected profit of 98 cents and revenue growth of 5% to $1.34 billion. For 2012, the company forecast profit of $4.15 to $4.35 a share on revenue growth of 5% to 7%. Analysts were anticipating a profit of $4.22 a share and revenue growth of 5% to $5.68 billion. Cooper's stock was recently trading up 3.9% at $59.96 a share. Source: online.wsj.com