Louisiana-Pacific 3Q adjusted profit misses

NEWS: Louisiana-Pacific's third-quarter revenue fell short of Wall Street expectations as prices for wood products used in home construction fell.

DETAILS: Louisiana-Pacific makes siding as well as oriented strand board, sold in sheets made from pressed wood chips. It's used for flooring and other surfaces in homes. The company said prices for oriented strand board continued to decline. Profits from that unit fell to $30 million, from $49 million a year ago.

NUMBERS: The Nashville, Tenn., company earned $38.1 million, or 26 cents per share, for the quarter that ended Sept. 30. That was up by 21.7 percent from its year-ago profit of $31.3 million, or 22 cents per share. Adjusted income would have been $19 million, or 13 cents per share.

Revenue rose almost 10 percent to $507.4 million from $462.1 million a year earlier. Analysts surveyed by FactSet had been expecting a profit of 11 cents per share on revenue of $518.8 million.

FUTURE: "We saw the pace of improvement in the housing market slow over the summer," CEO Curt Stevens said. "However, the pace of permit activity, builder confidence and a slightly better economy should allow housing starts to grow in coming quarters."

STOCK: Louisiana-Pacific Corp. fell 95 cents, or 5.6 percent, to $15.89 in afternoon trading. The 52-week range for the shares is $14.51 to $22.55.