
HII [HII] on Thursday reported slightly higher earnings in its fourth quarter driven by a pension benefit while the company enjoyed solid gains in its top-line due to improvements across its operating segments. Net income rose nearly 3 percent to $123 million, $3.07 earnings per share (EPS), from $120 million ($2.99 EPS) a year ago, well below consensus expectations of $3.30 per share. Sales increased 5 percent to a record $2.8 billion from $2.7 billion, driven primarily by volume at the…