Whirlpool Corporation announced fourth-quarter GAAP net earnings of $170 million, or $2.64 per diluted share, compared to $(268) million, or $(3.74) per diluted share, reported for the same prior-year period.
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Fourth-quarter ongoing earnings per diluted share were $4.75, compared to $4.10 in the same prior-year period.
Fourth-quarter net sales were $5.7 billion, flat compared to the same prior-year period.
Excluding the impact of currency, sales increased 2.5 percent.
Fourth-quarter earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) were $307 million, or 5.4 percent of sales, compared to $249 million, or 4.4 percent of sales, in the same prior-year period.
Fourth-quarter ongoing EBIT was $348 million, or 6.2 percent of sales, compared to $374 million, or 6.6 percent of sales, in the same prior-year period.
On a GAAP and ongoing basis, EBIT margin was favorably impacted by product price/mix and restructuring benefits, which were offset by higher costs, unfavorable productivity related to lower unit volumes and currency; prior-period results were positively impacted by the sale and monetization of approximately $30 million in certain tax credits in Latin America.
For the full year, net sales were $21.0 billion compared to $21.3 billion in 2017.
Excluding the impact of currency, sales decreased 0.3 percent.
GAAP net earnings and net earnings per share were $(183) million and $(2.72) in 2018 compared to $350 million and $4.70 in the prior year.
Full-year EBIT was $171 million, or 0.8 percent of sales, compared to $1.0 billion, or 4.9 percent of sales, in the prior year.
Full-year ongoing EBIT was $1.3 billion, or 6.3 percent of sales, compared to $1.4 billion, or 6.4 percent of sales, in the prior year.
2018 GAAP net earnings per diluted share were adversely impacted by non-cash items of $850 million and restructuring expense of $247 million.
Non-cash items include asset impairment charges related to the EMEA region and the settlement with the French Competition Authority, which is expected to impact cash flow in 2019.
Ongoing earnings per diluted share were $15.16, compared to $13.74 in the prior year, primarily driven by tax rate favorability and reduced share count.
The Company made a voluntary contribution of approximately $350 million in the third-quarter to lower its long-term pension funding obligation.
This contribution, combined with additional tax planning, resulted in a lower effective tax rate for the full year.
For the twelve months ended December 31, 2018, the Company reported cash provided by operating activities of $1.2 billion, compared to $1.3 billion in the prior year.
The Company reported free cash flow of $853 million for the full year 2018, compared to $707 million in the prior year, primarily driven by disciplined working capital management and the timing of certain payments. ■