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    Ball Corp. 4Q profit slides 16 pct, misses Street

    BROOMFIELD, Colo. (AP) — Packaging supplier Ball Corp. said Thursday that its fourth-quarter profit fell 16 percent as costs rose faster than revenue.

    For the three months ended Dec. 31, the maker of soda and food cans, metal containers and aerospace technology said its net income fell to $77.5 million, or 47 cents per share, from $92.2 million, or 52 cents per share in the 2010 fourth quarter.

    Revenue rose 3 percent to $2.05 billion from $2 billion.

    Analysts polled by FactSet were expecting profit of 53 cents per share, on revenue of $2.06 billion, on average.

    Ball said the profit declined stemmed from weaker sales volume for 12-ounce beverage cans in North America and Europe and six fewer business days in the quarter than the year before. Sales also declined in the company's metal food and household products packaging unit and its aerospace division.

    Costs rose 4 percent to $1.89 billion during the quarter, reflecting higher materials costs and consolidation expenses.

    The company is realigning its beverage can manufacturing plants. During the quarter it completed the shutdown of a plant in Torrance, Calif., and reduced 12-ounce beverage can capacity in its Columbus, Ohio, plant. It built a new line for its reclosable aluminum bottle in its Golden, Colo., plant and acquired its partners' 60-percent interest in a plant in Qingdao, China, where it is building a new, expanded plant to meet growing demand in the region. It also has joint venture plants in Brazil and Vietnam scheduled to start operations by the end of March.

    For the year, the company posted net income of $444 million, or $2.63 per share, down from $468 million, or $2.55 per share, for all of 2010. Revenue rose 13 percent to $8.63 billion from $7.63 billion.

    The company said it expects investments made in 2011 to help drive 2012 results. It said it expects 10 to 15 percent growth in earnings per share this year. That implies a forecast in the range of $2.89 to $3.02 per share for the year, based on earnings per share in 2011.

    Wall Street analysts expect profit of $3.08 per share.

    Ball shares were unchanged in premarket trading Thursday. The stock closed down 5 cents at $37.70 on Wednesday.

     

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