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Owens Corning profit down 88 percent
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Owens Corning (OC.N) posted an 88 percent drop in quarterly profit on Wednesday, saying the decline of the U.S. residential construction market continued to weaken demand for its building materials.
Net income in the second quarter fell to $29 million, or 22 cents a share. It earned $251 million, or $4.19 a share, in the year-ago quarter.
Excluding one-time items, the Toledo, Ohio-based company earned 37 cents a share.
Net sales fell 11 percent to $1.53 billion from $1.72 billion.
Analysts were expecting Owens Corning, which emerged from bankruptcy protection last October, to earn 31 cents a share, before items, on revenue of $1.54 billion, according to Reuters Estimates.
A slowdown in U.S. home construction was likely to carry through 2007 and well into next year, the company said. But it said it still expects 2007 adjusted earnings before interest and taxes to top $415 million, excluding the impact of acquisitions and divestitures.
The company, which last month agreed to sell its siding solutions business to France's Saint Gobain (SGOB.PA) for $371 million, said it is continuing a review of its Fabwell unit, which makes components for recreational vehicles.
