3rd-quarter profit rises for O-I as sales wane

10/28/2010

Owens-Illinois Inc., which is in the midst of a state takeover of its Venezuelan plants, reported increased third-quarter profits Wednesday despite a 7 percent decline in sales.

O-I is the world's largest manufacturer of glass containers. For the quarter, the Perrysburg-based company reported sales of $1.74 billion, down from $1.87 billion for the same period a year earlier.

The company reported a profit of $138.7 million, or 84 cents a share, during the third quarter, up from $126.7 million, or 74 cents a share, during the same period in 2009.

The glassmaker said bottle shipments for beer in newer markets, as well as global glass shipments for wine and alcohol, were up between 5 and 13 percent. It expects the expropriation of its two Venezuelan plants to negatively impact its fourth-quarter results.

Meanwhile, Owens Corning said decreased sales in its roofing segment contributed to a 44 percent decline in its third-quarter earnings compared to last year.

The Toledo-based maker of building materials and fiber-glass reported sales of $1.2 billion for the third quarter, down from $1.3 billion in the same period a year ago.

The company had a quarterly profit of $44 million, or 35 cents a share, a decrease of nearly 44 percent from $78 million, or 61 cents a share, in the same period a year ago.

Owens Corning said sales for its composites segment grew to $477 million for the quarter, up 6 percent for the quarter. However, building material sales fell nearly 21 percent to $742 million.

The company said sales also decreased for its roofing materials, which contributed to a 28 percent decline overall in building materials sales compared with a year ago.