Starwood profit beats estimate

The White Plains, N.Y., company said pro forma profit from operations rose to $27 million, or 14 cents a share, from $14 million, or 4 cents, in the year-ago period. Earnings exceeded the average estimate of 10 cents from analysts polled by First Call Corp.

Pro forma revenue rose 9.1 percent to $1.2 billion from $1.1 billion.

Results are pro forma to include results from Starwood's Caesars World casino chain. Starwood agreed three weeks ago to sell its Caesars World casino chain to Park Place Entertainment Corp. of Las Vegas for $3 billion in cash as Starwood Chairman Barry Sternlicht moves to exit the volatile gambling business.

Starwood said that excluding the Desert Inn, which it is trying to sell, its Caesars gaming division posted revenue of $346 million in the quarter, up 20 percent from the year-ago quarter; and that cash flow (EBITDA) was $84 million, up 25 percent. Starwood owns, manages or franchises 700 hotels with more than 220,000 rooms in 72 countries.

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