United profit highest in 7 years; JetBlue plans to slow its growth

United Airlines is flying high again, especially overseas.

United parent UAL reported its most profitable quarter in seven years Tuesday, a $274 million second-quarter profit that reflected increased capacity on international routes, as well as fuller U.S. flights and lower costs.

JetBlue Airways also posted solid second-quarter earnings, but its 50 percent profit increase was tempered by the announcement that it plans to slow its growth because of the February ice-storm debacle that forced the cancellation of 1,700 flights.

The better-than-expected earnings by UAL, for years an industry laggard financially, reinforced that carriers are benefiting more than in past years from the busy summer travel season. Like United, many have restructured to reduce domestic flights and trim costs.

Among other U.S. carriers in the latest quarter, American Airlines parent AMR posted a $317 million profit last week, Delta Air Lines earned $1.77 billion or $274 million excluding bankruptcy-related items, Southwest Airlines netted $278 million and Continental Airlines earned $228 million.

Countrywide Financial

Delinquencies, defaults lead to shrinking profit

Countrywide Financial said Tuesday its second-quarter profit shrank by nearly a third as softening home prices led to more delinquencies and mortgage defaults.

The huge mortgage lender was forced to take impairment charges as it braced for more borrowers unable to make mortgage payments.

Countrywide also said the market will become even more challenging as lenders compete more fiercely.

The news sent shares of the company, based in Calabasas, Calif., sliding $3.92, or 11.5 percent, to $30.14 during afternoon trading Tuesday.

Countrywide reported second-quarter net income of $485 million, or 81 cents per share, compared with $722 million, or $1.15 per share, in the second quarter of 2006 ended June 30.

McDonald's

Loss of 60 cents per share reported for second quarter

McDonald's on Tuesday reported a second-quarter net loss, dragged down by a $1.6 billion charge related to its sale of restaurants in Latin America, and also said Chief Financial Officer Matthew Paull will retire.

The company, based in OakBrook, Ill., reported a loss of $711.7 million, or 60 cents a share, compared with a profit of $834.1 million, or 56 cents a share, in the year-earlier quarter.

Factoring out the expected charge from the Latin American sale to a franchiser, the company earned 71 cents a share from continuing operations. Revenue came in 12 percent higher at a bit more than $6 billion, while sales at restaurants open for more than a year were up 7.4 percent.

The average estimate of analysts polled by Thomson Financial had called for earnings of 71 cents a share on revenue of $5.9 billion.

Lockheed Martin

Driven by war spending, profit surges 34 percent

Lockheed Martin on Tuesday reported a 34 percent surge in profit during the second quarter, as large weapons-makers continued to benefit from increased defense spending driven by the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Lockheed, based in Bethesda, Md., reported a profit of $778 million ($1.82 a share) during the quarter, compared with $580 million ($1.34) in the second quarter of 2006. Revenue rose 7 percent, to $10.65 billion, from $9.96 billion a year earlier. Lockheed, the world's largest weapons maker, also said it expects to report up to $41.75 billion in revenue this year, up from its previous estimate of up to $41.35 billion.

"They were wild," Paul Nisbet, a defense-industry analyst with JSA Research, said of the results. "They were way more than had been anticipated."

Lockheed shares rose $3.57, to $103.09.

The company's positive quarter came despite recent problems with some of its high-profile programs, including a $24 billion Coast Guard modernization project. Lockheed is also working to improve reliability of a long-range missile that was at risk of termination.

DuPont

Flat earnings reported as higher sales offset

Chemical giant DuPont on Tuesday reported flat second-quarter earnings as higher sales were offset by the cost of energy and accelerated biotech research.

International sales growth and higher domestic prices helped offset the impact of continuing weakness in the U.S. housing and automotive markets.

Net income slipped to $972 million this year from $975 million in the second quarter of 2006, which included a one-time tax benefit of $31 million, or 3 cents per share. Earnings per share were flat at $1.04.

Analysts surveyed by Thomson Financial were looking for profit of $1.06 per share. Revenue topped Wall Street's $7.86 billion consensus estimate.

SuperValu

Overall sales slow down with competition, gas prices

SuperValu said first-quarter profit climbed 70 percent on its purchase of Albertsons. The shares fell the most in five years after the company said sales are slowing.

Net income rose to $148 million, or 69 cents a share, the Minnesota company said. Revenue more than doubled to $13.3 billion in the three months through June 16.

Sales began to slow at the end of the quarter and that trend continued, Chief Executive Officer Jeffrey Noddle said Tuesday. The slow trend stems partly from competition and consumers facing higher gas prices, leading to fewer store trips, Noddle said.

Compiled from The Associated Press, Bloomberg News, MarketWatch and The Washington Post