Duracell Sales, Profits Decline In 4th Quarter

Staff On Mar 12 2001 - 8:00am

BOSTON -Sales in the Duracell battery segment of the Gillette Co. fell 6 percent in the fourth quarter ending Dec. 31, while profits dropped 31 percent, compared with the same three months in 1999.

For the year, the Duracell battery segment sales declined 5 percent, while profits were off 28 percent, compared with full-year results in 1999.

Overall Gillette sales for the quarter were $2.82 billion, a 1 percent increase from the $2.80 billion recorded in the year-ago quarter. The company reported a net loss of $85 million for the fourth quarter, compared with a $339 million gain in the year-ago three months.

Sales for the year climbed 2 percent to $9.30 billion, compared with $9.15 billion in the same quarter in 1999. Net income for the year was $392 million, down from the $1.3 billion recorded in the year-ago quarter.

Gillette's fourth-quarter 2000 and total-year 2000 figures include one-time charges for restructuring costs that reduced net income for the quarter and year each by $430 million.