THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1997, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Wednesday, January 22, 1997 TAG: 9701220371
SECTION: BUSINESS PAGE: D3 EDITION: FINAL
LENGTH: 79 lines
Bank of Tidewater, the Virginia Beach community bank, said its net income for the Dec. 31 quarter climbed 10 percent, while full-year net income was up 24 percent. For the October-through-December quarter, the bank earned $564,012, which was up from $512,874 in the year-earlier period. Per-share earnings were 39 cents, compared with 37 cents. Net income for 1996 amounted to $2.29 million, up from $1.85 million in 1995. Earnings per share increased to $1.60 from $1.34.
Chrysler Corp. said fourth-quarter earnings rose 4.4 percent, beating expectations on the power of continued strong minivan, sport utility and pickup truck sales. The automaker said profit from operations rose to a record $1.09 billion, or $1.51 a share fully diluted, compared with net income of $1.04 billion, or $1.33 a share, a year earlier. Revenue rose 7.9 percent to $16.25 billion from $15.01 billion, the company said. Charges totaling $279 million, or 39 cents a share, in the latest quarter resulted in net income of $807 million, or $1.12 a share.
Citicorp said Tuesday its fourth-quarter net income increased 9 percent, as strong gains in corporate worldwide banking offset a 20 percent loss in credit card operations. The nation's second biggest banking company earned $987 million, or $1.97 per share, in the last three months of 1996, up from $905 million, or $1.89 a share, a year ago. The results exceeded analysts' average expectations of $1.95 per share, according to a survey by First Call.
Continental Airlines Inc. said net income for the fourth quarter was $47 million, or 71 cents a share, compared to $41 million, or 63 cents a share, for the same period last year. Revenues rose to $1.56 billion from $1.42 billion. For the year, the Continental earned $319 million, or $4.87 per share, on revenues of $6.36 billion. A year earlier the company had a profit of $224 million, or $3.60 per share, revenues of $5.83 billion.
Exxon Corp., the country's largest oil company, increased profits 49 percent in the forth quarter thanks to higher natural gas and crude prices. Exxon reported Tuesday that net income was $2.49 billion, or $2 a share, on revenue of $37.62 billion. That's compared to $1.68 billion, or $1.35 per share, on revenue of $31.5 billion in the same quarter in 1995. Excluding special items, net income per share in the quarter was $1.67 in 1996 compared to $1.28 in 1995.
First Virginia Banks Inc. reported a 12 percent increase in fourth-quarter net income and a 4 percent increase for all of 1996. The Falls Church-based parent of First Virginia Bank of Tidewater earned a record $30.8 million for the October-through-December period. That compared with $27.56 million for the same months of 1995. Earnings per share rose to 94 cents from 81 cents. For the year, First Virginia's net income was a record $116.34 million, up from $111.6 million in 1995. Per-share earnings in 1996 were $3.50, compared with $3.28 the previous year.
International Business Machines Corp. on Tuesday reported its fourth-quarter profits grew 18.3 percent, lifted by surging demand for its computer services and stronger sales of computer software and hardware. IBM said it earned $2.02 billion, or $3.93 per share, in the quarter ended Dec. 31. That was up from profits of $1.71 billion, or $3.09 per share, in the year-ago period. Revenues rose 5.6 percent to $23.14 billion from $21.92 billion.
Jefferson Bankshares Inc., the Charlottesville-based parent of Jefferson National Bank, said its fourth-quarter net income fell 3 percent to $7.05 million from $7.27 million in the comparable three months of 1995. However, per-share earnings rose to 49 cents from 48 cents because the company had fewer shares outstanding in late 1996. For the entire year, net income rose 12 percent to $27.8 million from $24.86 million in 1996. Earnings per share were $1.86, a 13 percent increase from $1.64 in 1995, because there were fewer shares.
Lucent Technologies Inc. on Tuesday reported record quarterly profits, rebounding from a year-ago loss amid robust sales of communications equipment. The phone equipment company, spun off by AT&T Corp. last year, said it earned $859 million, or $1.35 a share, in its first fiscal quarter ended Dec. 31. That compared with a loss of $1.02 billion, or $1.60 a share, that Lucent would have reported if it were independent in the year-ago period. Those results were dragged down by the cost of restructuring the company. Lucent said its quarterly revenue rose 6.9 percent to a record $7.94 billion from $7.43 billion.
Reynolds Metals Co. reported fourth-quarter net income of $1 million. After deducting a $9 million dividend on the company's 7 percent PRIDES(SM) preferred stock, Reynolds reported a net loss for the quarter of 13 cents per common share. This compares to net income of $84 million, or $1.15 per common share, for the fourth quarter of 1995.