Procter & Gamble Co (PG)

[dr_praeses]

Procter & Gamble 4th Quarter Net Up 19% On New Product Initiatives

Procter & Gamble 4th Quarter Net Up 19% On New Product Initiatives
By Sara Leitch
Last Update: 7:14 AM ET Aug 3, 2007

Procter & Gamble Co.'s fiscal fourth-quarter earnings rose 19%, boosted by growth in developing regions and product initiatives including Gillette Fusion, Tide Simple Pleasures and Crest Pro-Health. The Cincinnati-based consumer and health-care products company had fourth-quarter earnings of $2.27 billion, or 67 cents a share, compared with $1.9 billion, or 55 cents a share, a year earlier. Procter & Gamble said net sales for the quarter ended June 30 rose 8% to $19.27 billion from $17.84 billion a year ago. Analysts surveyed by Thomson Financial expected, on average, earnings of 66 cents a share on revenue of $19.1 billion. In addition, Procter & Gamble said it plans to increase its share repurchase program. The company said it now plans to buy back $24 billion to $30 billion of shares over the next three years, at a rate of $8 billion to $10 billion a year. End of Story