Consumer and commercial products marketer Newell Rubbermaid Inc. (NWL) said before the bell on Friday that it saw an increase to its fourth quarter profits on higher revenue. Adjusted earnings just beat the Wall Street view while revenue was in-line.

The Atlanta, Georgia-based company reported an increase to its fourth quarter profit, coming in at $101.9 million, or 35 cents per share, up from $80.4 million, or 27 cents per share, earned in the previous year.

Adjusted earnings, which excludes certain one-time items, were 43 cents per share in the quarter, up from 40 cents per share last year. This was slightly higher than the analysts’ estimate of 42 cents per share, according to Thomson Reuters.

The company’s net sales grew to $1.52 billion in the quarter, up +1.6% from the previous year. This revenue was in-line with the analysts’ expectation.

Michael Polk, Newell Rubbermaid CEO said, “Our solid fourth quarter financial results represent the sixth consecutive quarter of consistent delivery in line with or better than expectations. Full year normalized EPS and operating cash flow both came in above the high end of our guidance range.”

Looking ahead, NWL sees full year 2013 EPS to be in a range of $1.78 to $1.84 with sales up 1% to 3%. Analysts are expecting full year earnings to be $1.82 per share.

Newell Rubbermaid shares were down slightly during pre-market trading. The stock is up +24.76% over the past year.

The Bottom Line
Shares of Newell Rubbermaid (NWL) have a dividend yield of 2.56% based on last night’s closing price of $23.48.

Newell Rubbermaid Inc. (NWL) is not recommended at this time, holding a Dividend.com DARS™ Rating of 3.3 out of 5 stars.

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