Pixar Posts Profit Drop, Boosts Forecast for Year

Pixar Animation Studios, headed by Apple Computer Inc. Chief Executive Steven Jobs, said third-quarter profit fell 30% as sales for its computer-animated movies declined. The firm increased its fourth-quarter forecast. Net income fell to $6.17 million, or 12 cents a share, from $8.82 million, or 18 cents, a year earlier, Chief Financial Officer Ann Mather said on a conference call with analysts. Revenue fell 35% to $11.3 million from $17.3 million.

Pixar and Walt Disney Co. last weekend released “Monsters, Inc.” The computer-animated movie generated $62.6 million in ticket sales over the weekend, the biggest opening for an animated film. Pixar now expects to earn 60 cents a share this year, more than its previous forecast of 50 to 58 cents.