Estee Lauder 3rd-qtr profit more than doubles on strength in Asia/Pacific, better US spending

Estee Lauder 3Q profit doubles on int’l, US sales

NEW YORK — The maker of Clinique and Aveda products says its fiscal third-quarter profit more than doubled on strong results overseas and improving U.S. sales.

Estee Lauder Cos. says its performance also benefited from cost-cutting efforts, saving about $104 million in the quarter.

The cosmetics maker’s earnings surged to $57.5 million, or 28 cents per share, for the period ended March 31.

Taking out restructuring charges and other items, profit was 34 cents per share. This topped the 32 cents-per-share estimate of analysts polled.

Revenue rose 9 percent to $1.86 billion on better results from its skin care, makeup, fragrance, and hair care units and strength in Asia/Pacific. The results missed Wall Street’s $1.88 billion.