Reuters: Global Markets: Staples profit beats estimates, shares up

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Staples profit beats estimates, shares up Nov 14th 2012, 12:42 Tweet Share this Email Print Related News Home Depot view up as housing heals; Sandy lift looms Tue, Nov 13 2012 Xerox cuts profit target but raises dividend Tue, Nov 13 2012 JC Penney's Johnson has backing to weather sales plunge Fri, Nov 9 2012 Groupon results disappoint again, stock hits record low Thu, Nov 8 2012 Image revamp helps Wendy's boost North American same-store sales Thu, Nov 8 2012 Analysis & Opinion Sampo posts weaker-than-expected profit due to claims AOL: Down so long, it’s starting to look up Related Topics Investing Simplified » Hot Stocks » Asian Markets » A Staples office supplies store is pictured in Burbank, California May 13, 2008. Credit: Reuters/Fred Prouser Wed Nov 14, 2012 7:42am EST (Reuters) - Staples Inc (SPLS.O), the largest U.S. office supply chain, reported a slightly better than expected quarterly profit, as costs declined and sales in North America held up, although weakness in Europe and Australia hit overall revenue. Staples shares were up 4 percent at $11.70 in premarket trade. They had fallen by about a 20 percent this year. Staples' third-quarter adjusted profit beat estimates by 1 cent per share, although restructuring costs took it to a net loss. Office supply chains are a good gauge of economic health because demand for their products is closely tied to white-collar employment rates. Sales at Staples have suffered as corporate customers and other shoppers cut back on discretionary spending in the weak global economy, forcing the chain to keep a tight lid on costs. But in the latest quarter, Staples reported North American delivery sales rose 1 percent even as retail sales remained flat. Staples outlined in September plans to close 30 stores in North America and 45 stores in Europe, incurred impairment and restructuring charges of about $840 million in the quarter. The company posted a net loss of $596.3 million, or 89 cents per share, for the third quarter, compared with a profit of $326.4 million, or 47 cents per share, a year earlier. Excluding items, the company earned 46 cents per share. Sales fell about 2 percent to $6.35 billion. Analysts on average were looking for a profit of 45 cents per share on revenue of $6.45 billion, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S. The company reiterated its full-year profit and sales forecast. (Reporting by Ranjita Ganesan, Chris Peters in Bangalore and Dhanya Skariachan in New York; Editing by Don Sebastian and Rodney Joyce) Related Quotes and News Company Price Related News Tweet this Link this Share this Digg this Email Reprints We welcome comments that advance the story through relevant opinion, anecdotes, links and data. If you see a comment that you believe is irrelevant or inappropriate, you can flag it to our editors by using the report abuse links. Views expressed in the comments do not represent those of Reuters. For more information on our comment policy, see http://blogs.reuters.com/fulldisclosure/2010/09/27/toward-a-more-thoughtful-conversation-on-stories/ Comments (0) Be the first to comment on reuters.com. Add yours using the box above.

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