P&G To Split Off Duracell, Reports In-line Results

Shares of Procter & Gamble rose 0.9% in premarket trade Friday, after the consumer products giant announced plans to split off its Duracell business. P&G also reported third-quarter results that were in line with expectations. The company said it would exit the battery business, first by selling its interest in a China-based joint venture, then by splitting off Duracell into a stand-alone company. For net earnings, P&G reported a decline to $1.99 billion, or 69 cents a share, from $3.03 billion, or $1.04 a share, in the year-earlier period. Excluding non-recurring items, adjusted per-share earnings were $1.07, matching the FactSet consensus analyst estimate. Sales dipped to $20.79 billion from last year's $20.83 billion, compared with analyst forecasts of $20.76 billion. For fiscal 2015, P&G affirmed adjusted EPS percentage growth forecast of "mid-single digits." The stock, a component of the Dow industrials, has gained 2.2% year to date through Thursday, while the Dow has added 0.6%.