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DuPont 3Q profit falls
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October 24, 2001: 8:00 a.m. ET
No. 1 chemical maker cites difficult business climate.
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NEW YORK (CNNmoney) - DuPont Co. said Wednesday its earnings tumbled 75 percent in the third quarter and warned that the Sept. 11 attacks will hurt results in the fourth quarter.
The nation's largest chemical company said net income fell to $142 million, or 13 cents a share, from $562 million, or 53 cents a share, a year earlier.
Excluding a gain equal to 1 cent a share, DuPont's earnings of 12 cents a share came in a bit higher than forecasts of 10 cents a share, according to First Call, which tracks Wall Street forecasts.
Revenue fell to $5.8 billion from $6.9 billion. First Call's forecast was for revenue of $5.8 billion in the period.
"Clearly we are experiencing one of the most challenging business environments the company has faced in decades, Chairman and CEO Charles Holliday Jr. said. "The aftermath of Sept. 11 has added to economic uncertainty and will likely prolong the current economic downturn.
DuPont also said it does not expect fourth-quarter earnings to improve over its third-quarter results. Analysts had been forecasting profits of 17 cents a share for the fourth quarter, according to First Call.
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Shares of DuPont (DD: Research, Estimates), a component of the Dow Jones industrial average, gained 24 cents to $42.10 Tuesday. 
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