Helen of Troy 4Q profit rises 6 percent

Personal-care and household-products company Helen of Troy Ltd. said Tuesday its fourth-quarter profit jumped 6 percent, helped by tax and litigation settlement gains.

For the quarter ended Feb. 29, net income rose to $10.3 million, or 33 cents per share, from $9.7 million, or 30 cents per share in the prior year quarter.

Excluding tax benefits and a gain on a litigation settlement, the company earned 31 cents per share.

Analysts polled by Thomson Financial expected profit of 29 cents per share.

Revenue rose less than 1 percent to $144.1 million from $143.9 million in the fourth quarter of 2007.

Sales in the housewares division rose 22 percent, helped by sales of OXO brands. Personal care segment sales, though, fell 7 percent due to the "difficult retail environment." Sales at many retailers have slowed as more consumers have cut back on discretionary spending to better afford higher gas and food prices.

For the year, profit grew 23 percent to $61.5 million, or $1.93 per share, from $50.1 million, or $1.58 per share in the prior year.

Revenue rose 3 percent to $652.5 million from $634.9 million in 2007.