Towers Watson 4Q adj. profit, revenue beat Street

NEW YORK (AP) -- Towers Watson & Co.'s fiscal fourth-quarter net income climbed 27 percent as revenue improved in all regions, the consulting firm said Wednesday.

Adjusted earnings and revenue beat Wall Street's expectations.

The human resources and risk management consultant earned $82.9 million, or $1.16 per share, for the three months ended June 30. That's up from $65.3 million, or 91 cents per share, a year earlier.

Stripping out certain items, earnings were $1.36 per share.

Analysts predicted earnings of $1.27 per share, according to a FactSet survey.

Revenue for the New York company rose 6 percent to $875.3 million from $826.2 million, topping Wall Street's $874.1 million estimate.

Revenue for the benefits division climbed 5 percent to $494 million, while revenue for the talent and rewards unit edged up 1 percent to $132 million. Risk and financial services revenue fell 6 percent to $186 million as demand for projects softened in Europe, the Middle East and Africa. There was also weakness in the Americas and the Asia Pacific region.

The exchange solutions unit contributed $35 million in revenue.

For the year, Towers Watson earned $318.8 million, or $4.46 per share. Last fiscal year, it earned $260.2 million, or $3.59 per share.

Adjusted earnings were $5.57 per share.

Annual revenue increased 5 percent to $3.6 billion from $3.42 billion.

Going forward, Towers Watson foresees first-quarter adjusted earnings of $1.15 to $1.20 per share on revenue of $850 million to $870 million.

Analysts expect earnings of $1.20 per share on revenue of $869.1 million.