Beam Inc quarter earnings gives hope of better 2013 as bourbon remains strong

The company did not elaborate on those actions.

M&A HELPS OUTLOOK

For the new year, Beam said it is aiming for earnings-per-share growth in the high single digits in percentage terms, before one-time items, versus the $2.40 per share it earned in 2012.

The overall spirits market should grow about 3 percent this year, in line with last year, the company said, adding that it will face higher raw material costs and very little help from price increases.

Still, Beam expects to benefit from strong demand for bourbon, new products and marketing, strong growth in emerging markets and recent acquisitions.

Beam itself has been seen as a takeover candidate ever since late 2011, when it was separated from the home products business now known as Fortune Brands Home & Security Inc.

But the deal in April to buy Pinnacle for $605 million made it a much bigger bite for potential buyers, which could include Britain's Diageo Plc, France's Pernod Ricard SA and privately held Bacardi.

Market speculation has centered around Diageo buying Beam, since Beam's bourbons would fill a glaring hole in the global leader's portfolio. The rumors heated up in December, when Diageo said it ended talks on buying a stake in Jose Cuervo, the top-selling tequila, making Beam's Sauza tequila also attractive.

Diageo said on Thursday it planned to focus on developing its own tequila brand in-house.

Taking into account the 17 percent rise in Beam shares over the

... contd.