Temple-Inland 3rd-quarter profit surges

Temple-Inland Inc. on Thursday said its third-quarter profit soared, beating Wall Street expectations, as operational improvements in the company's box and food packaging business offset a loss at its building products unit.

The Austin-based company reported net income of $67 million, or 61 cents per share, up from a profit of $3 million, or 3 cents per share, in the same quarter a year ago.

Not counting one-time items, Temple-Inland's profit for the latest quarter was 24 cents per share. That tops the consensus forecast of analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters, who expected a profit of 18 cents per share, on average.

Temple-Inland's revenue fell 9 percent to $885 million, but beat analysts' forecast for $875.8 million.

The recession has driven down prices for the company's boxes as well as building products. But Chairman and CEO Doyle Simons said economic conditions "have stabilized and appear to be on a slow path to recovery."

Temple-Inland's corrugated packaging business recorded operating income of $94 million in the latest quarter, up from $50 million a year ago, with quarter-end inventories down 9 percent from a year ago. Lower box prices were offset by reduced costs at the company's milling operations and gains from a recent acquisition.

The building products business recorded a $4 million loss as the company was hit by higher prices for the lumber it uses in many of its building materials. The rising prices were partly offset by lower prices for gypsum and particleboard, and overall the segment's loss was narrower than last year's $6 million loss.

Shares of Temple-Inland rose 87 cents, or 5.2 percent, to $17.75 in midday trading.