NEW YORK (MONEY) - After spending much of the past 12 months reshuffling its portfolio of top consumer businesses, Fortune Brands' efforts were rewarded on Friday when the company reported first-quarter results.

Net income was up nearly 14 percent for the quarter on a 33 percent increase in revenue. These impressive results beat analysts' expectations by three or four cents a share.

One of the chief reasons for the big revenue gain was Fortune's $5 billion acquisition of more than 20 spirit and wine brands last year. This was the biggest step to date in the conglomerate's ongoing plan to upgrade its business mix and boost its earnings growth rate.

Today, the company owns a number of top-tier consumer brands -- Moen faucets, Titleist golf balls, Therma-Tru doors, Master Lock padlocks, as well as major spirits and wine product lines, including Jim Beam bourbon.

Last July, Fortune bought Courvoisier, Sauza tequila and other popular brands from Pernod Ricard, which had to shed them for antitrust reasons after its takeover of Allied Domecq. This was a great opportunity for Fortune, since wines and spirits have long been more profitable than the conglomerate's other businesses.

The following month, Fortune Brands spun off its office products division, which included Swingline staplers. The spinoff, which took the name ACCO Brands is now one of the biggest office-supply companies, following its subsequent merger with General Binding.

In February, the company announced the acquisition of SBR, maker of Simonton Windows. The business is a natural fit with the conglomerate's other home and hardware lines. Fortune projects that the acquisition will add to earnings within the first 12 months.

These moves to upgrade Fortune's business mix should aid both sales growth and profitability. For 2005 as a whole, earnings were up 12 percent before special charges on a 15 percent sales gain. And those results have accelerated in the first quarter.

Nonetheless, the stock has yet to reflect any of these positive developments. In fact, the share price is slightly lower than it was when I recommended Fortune Brands last November.

At a current $79.85, the stock trades at 15.2 times estimated earnings for the current year and only 13.6 times next year's projected results.

Earnings are projected to rise 14 percent this year and then continue at a 12 percent compound annual rate over the next five years. Those projections may be conservative, since the company should be able to realize some incremental gains as it integrates recent acquisitions.

In any event, over the next five years, the stock looks capable of providing an above-average total return, including a 1.8 percent current yield. Non-recurring charges resulting from corporate restructuring, however, seem to have temporarily obscured Fortune's improving business mix.

As a result, Fortune Brands' (Research) shares are still trading near the bottom of their 52-week range. And today's price looks like a buying opportunity for a stock that is getting increasing positive attention from analysts.

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