Stories related to: earnings

The outgoing Italian government posted all citizens’ earnings and tax information, briefly, on the Internet yesterday, sparking outrage over lost privacy, the BBC reports. The site was quickly clogged by Italians checking up on neighbors’ and celebrities’ financial status. The information went offline after about 24 hours in response to a complaint from the country’s privacy overseers. More »

The slumping US economy means Starbucks' quarterly profits won't meet estimates when figures are released April 30, the coffee giant said today. Analysts expected earnings of 21 cents per share for the quarter ended March 30; Starbucks expects 15 cents, the Wall Street Journal reports. It now predicts yearly sales to be lower than last year's 87 cents per share; Starbucks' January forecast had called for 96-98 cents. More »

Within Bank of America’s disappointing first-quarter earnings was an unwelcome harbinger for the banking industry, the Wall Street Journal reports. BofA’s results were dragged down by huge additions to its loan-loss provision, an expense many other banks will also record soon. Given current credit conditions, many banks will have to increase their bad-loan reserves, dragging down their earnings. More »

Goldman Sachs today beat analysts' dire predictions even though it reported a 53% drop in first-quarter profits—the worst falloff since 1999—after a $2.1 billion writeoff, reports Bloomberg. Analysts had expected the Wall Street brokerage to see profits drop more than 60%. Goldman said net income was $1.51 billion, down from $3.2 billion a year earlier. More »

Chrysler lost nearly $2.9 billion in a 2-month period last fall, after its split from Daimler, a filing by the German company shows. The filing by Daimler, which retains 19.9% of the automaker, offers a rare look at how costly the company's reorganization effort has been since it was taken private by Cerberus Capital Management in May, the Wall Street Journal reports. More »

The headlines being generated from the ongoing battle for control of IAC/InterActiveCorp between John Malone and Barry Diller took a backseat—briefly--yesterday as the company announced horrific fourth quarter numbers, taking a loss of nearly $370 million after being sideswiped by the subprime mortgage meltdown through its ownership of LendingTree, reports the Wall Street Journal. More »

The SEC wants companies to tell shareholders how they measure an executive’s performance when calculating pay, but companies are balking, reports the Wall Street Journal. Their reticence has prompted the commission to send out a second wave of letters to some of the 350 companies it originally queried after receiving somewhat vague answers. More »

The nation’s largest independent credit card issuer, facing worsening loan troubles and a struggling US economy, says it will cut its 2007 profit forecast 20%. Capital One Financial 's news is another indicator that the mortgage crisis is infecting other loans, the Wall Street Journal notes; the company is also a big issuer of auto loans, and has seen increasing delinquency in that business . More »

Despite $45 billion in subprime writedowns, rolling CEO heads, and an $84 billion drop in market value, Wall Street will somehow post its second-most-profitable year ever, reports Bloomberg. “As the bombs are dropping and the mines are exploding, it's a bit of a surprise,'' said an investment banker. Goldman Sachs and Lehman Brothers will record their best years ever. More »

Wall Street is giddy with low unemployment, optimistic earnings predictions, and a resilient economy, but BusinessWeek lists five things for investors to worry about. Volatility in earnings, especially tech companies Consumer spending, as gas prices take their toll Inflation, which could prompt the fed to raise interest rates Subprime aftereffects, as the panic spreads to other forms of debt Too much optimism, as it starts to look like irrational exhuberance More »