Stocks in the news: Chevron, Sony, Alcatel-Lucent, Duke Energy

Chevron Corp. (CVX) said Friday its third-quarter earnings fell 52 percent to $3.8 billion, or $1.92 a share. Total revenues fell 41 percent to $46.6 billion. Recent earnings include a one-time benefit of 20 cents a share from the sale of assets. Analysts polled by FactSet Research were looking for earnings of $1.44 a share, on average.

Sony (SNE) reported a smaller-than-expected 26.3 billion yen ($289 million) quarterly loss as cost cuts combined with healthy sales of PlayStation 3 game consoles and Michael Jackson hits helped it inch toward recovery. The company also trimmed its full-year loss forecast.


Alcatel-Lucent SA (ALU) saw its net loss more than double to euro182 million ($269 million) in the third quarter as European phone companies, its key customers, cut back on spending. Results were worse than analyst expectations. Shares dropped over 8 percent in premarket trade.

Duke Energy (DUK) said Friday third-quarter net income fell by about half to $109 million, or 8 cents a share. Third-quarter adjusted earnings totaled 40 cents a share, beating Wall Street analysts estimates by a penny. Revenue fell slightly to $3.4 billion. Shares gained over 1 percent ahead of the bell.

Sanofi-Aventis (SNY) posted 16 percent higher earnings per share of 1.71 euros that beat forecasts of 1.61 euros as competition from generics was offset by revenue growth for other drugs. Sales just missed consensus, up 8 percent at 7.4 billion rather than 7.44 billion. It also raised its outlook for 2009 thanks to sales of swine flu vaccine. Shares fell 1. 6 percent.

NYSE Euronext (NYX) said Friday its net income plunged 28 percent in the third quarter to $138 million as it cut prices in a bid to counter falling trading volume. Total revenue for the period fell 10 percent to $1 billion.

MetLife Inc. (MET) reported a third-quarter slightly higher net loss of $650 million, or 79 cents a share. Operating earnings, however, came in at $718 million, or 87 cents a share, inline with estimates. Shares fell over 4 percent before the bell.

Estee Lauder (EL) says its fiscal first-quarter profit more than doubled to $140.7 million, or 71 cents per share, on strong sales of skin care products and lower expenses. Excluding charges, profit was 85 cents per share, much better than analysts' expectations of 34 cents EPS. Revenue slipped 4 percent to $1.83 billion, but bested estimates of $1.82 billion. It is also raising its full-year forecast. Shares jumped over 8 percent in premarket trade.

McAfee (MFE) reported late Thursday a 25 percent drop in third-quarter earnings due to acquisition-related charges and other items. On a non-GAAP basis, the company said earnings would have been $98.6 million, or 62 cents a share, beating estimates. Revenue gained 18 percent to $485.3 million. Shares dropped nearly 5 percent ahead of the bell.