The Dividend Daily

Fluid technology specialist ITT Corporation (ITT) on Friday said that its third quarter profit plummeted 72% from last year, hurt by a big one-time asbestos charge.

The White Plains, New York-based company reported third quarter net income of $59 million, or 32 cents per share, compared with $216.3 million, or $1.17 per share, in the year-ago period. Excluding one-time items, adjusted profit was $1.03 per share, easily beating the average Wall Street analyst estimate for 89 cents per share.

Third quarter revenue fell 6% from last year, to $2.7 billion.

Looking ahead, the company raised its full-year earnings outlook to a range of $3.70 to $3.74 per share, up from prior guidance for $3.50 to $3.70 per share. Analysts currently expect $3.69 per share.

ITT Corp shares were mostly flat in premarket trading Friday.

The Bottom Line
We had removed shares of ITT from our “recommended” list last Sept.9, when the stock traded at $ 61.73. The company has a 1.56% dividend yield, based on last night’s closing stock price of $54.36. The stock has technical support in the $48-$51 price area. If the shares can firm up, we see overhead resistance around the $57-$60 price levels. We would remain on the sidelines for now.

ITT Corporation (ITT) is not recommended at this time, holding a Dividend.com DARS™ Rating of 3.4 out of 5 stars.

Be sure to visit our complete recommended list of the Best Dividend Stocks, as well as a detailed explanation of our ratings system here.