Qwest Profits Fall in Third Quarter

October 30, 2008 · By Kalyani Mukherjee Filed Under Finance Tagged as: Qwest

US telecommunications company Qwest Communications International Inc reported a decline in profits during the third quarter as the weak economy forced consumers to disconnect landlines in an attempt to save money.

Qwest posted its third-quarter results on Tuesday which saw profits coming down to $151 million or 9 cents a share as compared to $2.1 billion or $1.08 a share in the same period a year ago. Returns of the previous year however included tax benefits. The company further revealed that adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation as well as amortization came down from $1.15 billion in the last year’s quarter to $1.08 billion in the third quarter this fiscal year.

Revenue also declined marginally from $3.43 billion a year back to $3.38 billion which was roughly in keeping with $3.3 billion forecast made by Reuters Estimates. Full year forecasts by Qwest came down to the lower end of its previous outlook and now estimates that revenue will decline by a further 2.5 percent while adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization will come down by between 1 percent and 2 percent.

Qwest Communications Inc blamed the fall in profits to an increase in the number of disconnected telephone landlines as consumers strove to save costs during difficult economic times. The company has already said that it would slash around 1200 jobs in the fourth quarter.

Share and Enjoy: