By Maxine Shapiro, KERA 90.1 business commentator
Dallas, TX – As earning season winds down, you've got to admit I've spared you the daily chatter of what's up and what's down. So today, without going into great detail, let's take a look at some earnings. I'm Maxine Shapiro with KERA Marketplace Midday.
Back in early January, Dallas-based Hotels.com warned they were lowering its expectations for the fourth quarter by a whopping 9 cents a share. Well, they were right. But that was just for the fourth quarter. So how did they fare for the year 2002? Brace yourself. Net income for the year rose by 459%. 2001 income was just under $13 million. 2002 net income, $72 million. Revenue was up a mere 76%.
Dallas-based TXU is sure glad 2002 is over. They had that big hit with the closing of its European operation. They reported an almost $5 billion loss for the year.
Never thought I'd see the day Texans cheer for a Japanese carmaker. Toyota is spreading all kinds of joy in the Lone Star State. At a time when American car dealers have to give buyers a thousand or two in incentives, Toyota's incentives were a couple hundred per car. Maybe saving all that money accounted for the companies 94% rise in profits for its last quarter. Nice timing. I'm sure San Antonio would be happy to see any new manufacturing in their city, but a successful business is icing on the cake.
And our not-so-little Irving-based Michael's Stores saw 2002 sales surge 13%. Total sales were almost $3 billion. CEO Michael Rouleau is expecting at least a 26% increase in earnings per share. That would make the sixth consecutive annual increase. Maybe I should think about finishing that mosaic table I started eons ago. Maybe not. Obviously, they're doing fine without me. For KERA Marketplace Midday, I'm Maxine Shapiro.
Marketplace Midday Reports air on KERA 90.1 Monday - Friday at 1:04 p.m. To contact Maxine Shapiro, please send emails to mshapiro@kera.org.