Steep fall still beats estimates

Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. said Monday it sold fewer tires in the third quarter as the U.S. auto industry slowed down, but on average earned more for each tire and beat Wall Street’s earnings expectations.

Earnings for the biggest U.S. tire maker dropped sharply in the third quarter from a year ago, when it got a $517-million one-time lift from the sale of its Engineered Products unit.

Goodyear earned $31 million, or 13 cents a share, for the three months ended Sept. 30, down from $668 million, or $2.75, a year ago. The latest earnings work out to 43 cents a share before one-time items, beating the 33 cents forecast by Wall Street analysts, according to Thomson Reuters.

Third-quarter income from continuing operations was $31 million, or 13 cents a share, compared with $159 million, or 67 cents, a year ago.

Sales rose to $5.2 billion from $5.1 billion a year earlier.

While net sales increased 2%, the number of tires sold declined 12.4% as car manufacturing slowed and higher gas prices led to less driving and fewer tire replacements.

Goodyear shares rose 48 cents, or 5.4%, to $9.40.