P&G posts Q3 results

CINCINNATI — Procter & Gamble on Friday announced a decrease in third-quarter profit, as sales rose 2%.



Net sales during the quarter rose 2% to $20.2 billion. Organic sales rose 3%.



Net earnings totaled $2.41 billion, or 82 cents per diluted share, compared with $2.87 billion, or 96 cents per diluted share, in the year-ago period.



In the company’s beauty segment, net sales rose 1% to $4.8 billion on unit volume growth of 1%. Organic sales grew 2%. Net earnings rose 3% to $523 million.



In grooming, net sales were in line with the prior year at $2 billion. Unit volume rose 1% and organic sales were up 2%. Net earnings slipped 4% to $398 million.



In February, P&G unveiled a larger than expected cost-savings program that involves cutting a total of 5,700 nonmanufacturing jobs in an effort to trim costs by the end of fiscal 2016. The move is part of a new plan to cut costs by $10 billion through fiscal 2016.