3M Fourth-Quarter Sales Increase 11 Percent and Earnings Increase 69 Percent
The company posted full-year 2009 sales of $23.1 billion and earnings per share of $4.52, down 8.5 percent and 7.6 percent, respectively. Excluding special items, 2009 earnings declined 9.3 percent to $4.69 per share.
“By any measure, 2009 was a highly successful year for 3M and I could not be more proud of the 3M team for their undaunted effort in a challenging year,” said George W. Buckley, 3M chairman, president and chief executive officer. “We delivered tremendous results while continuing to invest significantly in our future with R&D investments of $1.3 billion and capital investments topping $900 million. And we posted a 21.7 percent operating margin for the year, equal to 2008 levels, which is a tremendous achievement in the midst of the worst recession since early last century.”