Honeywell profit rises above expectations, while sales fell short

Honeywell International Inc. reported Friday a fourth-quarter adjusted profit that topped expectations while sales fell a bit shy. The aerospace and industrial company's stock was little changed in premarket trading. Net income declined to $1.59 billion, or $2.16 a share, from $1.74 billion, or $2.31 a share, in the year-ago period. Excluding non-recurring items, adjusted earnings per share grew 11% to $2.06, above the FactSet consensus of $2.04. Sales fell 2% to $9.50 billion, below the FactSet consensus of $9.61 billion. Among business segments, aerospace and performance materials and technologies sales missed expectations, while building technologies and safety and productivity sales beat. For 2020, Honeywell expects EPS of $8.60 to $9.00, surrounding the FactSet consensus of $8.80, and expects sales of $36.7 billion to $37.8 billion, below expectations of $38.1 billion. The stock has gained 3.3% over the past three months, while the SPDR Industrial Select Sector ETF has advanced 5.8% and the S&P 500 has tacked on 8.1%.

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