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Wednesday, November 04, 2009

TRW Swings to 3Q Profit, Boosts Sales View

By Matt Egan

FOXBusiness

TRW Automotive (TRW) said Wednesday it drove back into the black during the third quarter, and upgraded its full-year revenue guidance, pushing the auto-parts maker’s stock more than 5% higher.

The company said it earned $56 million, or 50 cents a share, last quarter, compared to a loss of $54 million, or 53 cents a share, in the same period of 2008. On an adjusted basis, it earned 68 cents a share, blowing away the Street’s view of 16 cents.

TRW’s sales sank 13.5% to $3.1 billion but that easily exceeded analysts’ forecast for $2.87 billion.

“The benefits achieved from our restructuring and cost containment actions combined with increasing vehicle production schedules had a significant positive impact on our third quarter results,” CEO John Plant said in a statement.

Meanwhile, TRW lifted its full-year sales guidance to approximately $11.4 billion, up from its previous forecast of $10.5 billion to $10.9 billion. The company also said it sees fourth-quarter sales of about $3.2 billion, which would top the Street’s estimates.

TRW said it expects 2009 production to total 8.6 million units in North America and 16.3 million units in Europe.

“The cautious optimism that has emerged for the industry is supported by the increasing vehicle production forecasts. Although it appears the bottom of the financial crisis has been reached, full recovery will be a long and gradual process," Plant said in a statement.

Shares of TRW climbed 5.7% to $17.95 in recent trading. The company stock has soared 371% year-to-date and surged since plummeting to $1.38 in March during the depths of the recession.

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