Amphenol Corp. boosted fourth-quarter earnings almost 50 percent, propelled by uncharacteristically strong sales of the Wallingford manufacturer’s electronic cabling and connectors for industrial equipment, mobile consumer devices and military hardware.
But company officials see their business returning this year to more seasonal demand patterns.
Amphenol earned $131.1 million, or 75 cents a share, in the three months ended Dec. 31, up from $87.6 million, or 51 cents a share, earned the same period a year earlier.
Fourth-quarter sales climbed to $949.9 million from $758.3 million the previous year.
For all of 2010, the company earned $496.4 million, or $2.82 a share, up from $317.8 million, or $1.83 a share, in 2009.
2010 revenue rose to $3.6 billion vs. $2.8 million the previous year.
CEO R. Adam Norwitt said that despite the rise in global demand in recent quarters, Amphenol has noticed “a stabilization of demand patterns in all of our major served markets.”
As a result, Amphenol forecasts first-quarter sales to be in the range of $925 million to $940 million, with earnings in the range of 70 cents to 72 cents a share.
For the year, it forecasts sales in the range of $3.89 billion to $3.96 billion, and earnings in the range of $3 to $3.10 a share.
In late morning trading, Amphenol shares were down 64 cents at $52.25.
