TORONTO (Reuters) - SNC-Lavalin Group Inc
Canada's biggest engineering and construction company said net earnings rose to C$103.1 million ($96.4 million), or 68 Canadian cents a share, for the three months ended September 30, from C$91.3 million, or 60 Canadian cents a share, in the year-before quarter.
Revenue declined 15.6 percent to C$1.42 billion.
Analysts on average had expected the Montreal-based company to report earnings of 57 Canadian cents a share on revenue of C$1.61 billion, according to data from Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.
"We achieved good results in the third quarter, our net income is up and our cash position has increased," Pierre Duhaime, SNC's president and chief executive, said in a statement.
"Our backlog remains solid and our list of prospects both national and international is promising, which bodes well for 2010."
The company reaffirmed its 2009 forecast for profit growth of 7 percent to 12 percent.
SNC's backlog at the end of June was C$10.2 billion, up from C$9.9 billion at the end of September 2008.
SNC had C$1.2 billion in cash and cash equivalents at the end of the quarter, up from C$988.2 million at December 31, 2008.
Shares in the company were up 71 Canadian cents, or 1.6 percent, at C$46.00 on the Toronto Stock Exchange on Friday morning.
($1=$1.07 Canadian)
(Reporting by John McCrank; editing by Peter Galloway)
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