Printing services firm RR Donnelley & Sons posted better-than-expected quarterly profit as it reported an increase in volumes of logistics services and printing, but continued to struggle with pricing pressure and acquisition-related costs.
The company posted a fourth-quarter net income of $27 million, or 13 cents a share, attributable to common shareholders, compared with a net loss of $79.5 million, or 39 cents a share a year ago.
Excluding items, the company posted a profit of 51 cents a share. Net sales at the Chicago-based company rose 4.8 percent to $2.71 billion.
Analysts on average were expecting a profit of 46 cents a share on revenue of $2.66 billion, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.
In February last year, RR Donnelley bought regulatory-filings printer Bowne & Co for $481 million.
Gross margin fell to 23.1 percent from 23.3 percent a year ago due to continued price pressure, and higher pension and benefits-related expenses, the company said in a statement.
Shares of the company, which have risen about 6 percent since its last quarterly report in early November, closed at $19.39 on Friday on Nasdaq.
