STAMFORD, Conn. (AP) — Speaker and headphone maker Harman International Industries Inc. said Wednesday its fiscal fourth-quarter profit fell to a fraction of what it was a year ago on tough comparisons to a prior-year period boosted by a $115.4 million profit from discontinued operations.
For the quarter ended June 30, Harman earned $18.9 million, or 26 cents per share, compared with $133.9 million, or $1.89 per share, in the same quarter last year.
Excluding discontinued operations and restructuring charges, the company said it posted an adjusted profit from continuing operations of 34 cents per share, up from an adjusted 30 cents per share.
Analysts, on average, expected an adjusted profit of 39 cents per share, according to a FactSet poll.
Sales rose 21 percent to $1.03 billion from $851 million. Excluding the effects of favorable exchange rates, the company said sales its rose 12 percent.
Automotive division sales rose 21 percent to $760 million, as automakers around the world continued to increase vehicle production.
Harman said a drop in higher-margin branded automotive sales to Japanese customers stemming from the March earthquake and tsunami in Japan reduced the recent quarter's operating income by about $15 million.
For the full fiscal 2011, the company posted a profit of $135.9 million, or $1.90 per share, down from $158.8 million, or $2.25 per share, in fiscal 2010.
Separately, Harman said Wednesday that it will reorganize its automotive and consumer divisions to create two new divisions, called lifestyle and infotainment. The company's professional division will largely remain the same.
Harman said the reorganization is designed to help boost its profits and better align the company with today's consumer lifestyles.
The lifestyle division will serve both the home and vehicle audio needs of customers, while the infotainment division will cover vehicle technologies such as navigation, hands-free, Internet and wireless connectivity and safety systems including camera, infrared, and laser technologies.
Harman also on Wednesday declared a quarterly cash dividend of 7.5 cents. The dividend will be paid on Sept. 6 to shareholders of record as of Aug. 22.
In pre-market trading, Harman shares fell $1.54, or 5.1 percent, to $30.04.