Diversified manufacturer Tyco International Ltd on Tuesday said quarterly net profit slipped on charges to pare debt and sell assets, and its shares fell 4 percent on lower-than-expected sales and rising inventory. Tyco, whose products range from hypodermic needles to printed circuit boards for electronics, said net profit in the first quarter ended December 31 fell to $709 million, or 33 cents per diluted share, from $719 million, or 34 cents a share, a year earlier.

Excluding a charge of 7 cents a share for the early retirement of debt and divestitures, Tyco earned 42 cents a share, in line with Wall Street estimates.

Nicholas Heymann, analyst at Prudential Securities, said in a note to clients that Tyco was "...getting the job done, but not clearing the bar by much," noting that its earnings and forecasts were in line with Wall Street expectations.

After a scandal rocked the company in 2002, Tyco has undertaken a restructuring plan by dumping assets and exiting businesses, such as the fibre optic cable unit it sold to India's Videsh Sanchar Nigam Ltd last year, in an effort to streamline operations and pare debt.

Copyright Reuters, 2005