Kodak Posts Loss, Sets More Job Cuts
Source: eWeek via Reuters
Written By Franklin Paul, Reuters
NEW YORK (Reuters)—Eastman Kodak Co. on Wednesday posted its third quarterly net loss in a row and said it would cut up to 10,000 more jobs as it struggles to cope with the collapsing traditional film market.
Even after excluding one-time items, Kodak posted a profit that was sharply below Wall Street estimates as its film sales fell faster than expected, and its shares slid 9.5 percent.
“Clearly, operations are on a downward slide at Kodak,” said Tim Ghriskey, chief investment officer at Solaris Asset Management, which has $800 million in assets under management.
“In traditional film, not only is the market in decline, but they face very aggressive price competition. Also, the digital camera (market) is not growing like it had been,” Ghriskey added.
The world’s top maker of photographic film posted a second-quarter net loss of $146 million, or 51 cents a share, compared with a net profit of $136 million, or 46 cents a share, a year earlier.
Revenue rose to $3.69 billion from $3.46 billion last year, although sales of traditional film-based products and services fell 15 percent to $1.843 billion.
Excluding costs related to restructuring and other one-time items, Rochester, New York-based Kodak had a profit of 53 cents a share.