Manpower 4Q Beats, Revenue Stays Flat

Hurt primarily by goodwill and impairment charges, Manpower (NYSE:MAN) swung to a fourth-quarter loss over a year ago profit, though excluding special costs, the company’s earnings landed ahead of Wall Street expectations.

The Milwaukee-based company posted a net loss of $350.4 million, or $4.29 a share, compared with a profit of $29.1 million, or 37 cents a share, in the same quarter last year.

Excluding one-time goodwill and impairment charges of $428.8 million, the company earned 66 cents a share, ahead of average analyst estimates polled by Thomson Reuters of 61 cents.

Revenue for the provider of employment services was $5.2 billion, up from $4.42 billion a year ago, narrowly beating the Street’s view of $5.17 billion.

Manpower's CEO said fiscal 2010 was a strong year for the company, noting “the fourth quarter was no different.”

“Our revenue growth in all geographies remains robust and we continue to leverage our office structure to drive profitability,” he said, adding that Europe in particular performed exceptionally well.