P&G forecasts profit below Street, shares drop Wed Apr 24, 2013 8:06am EDT (Reuters) - Procter & Gamble Co (PG.N) on Wednesday forecast current-quarter profit below Wall Street expectations and year-ago levels, sending shares lower in early trading. The world's largest household products maker also posted fiscal third-quarter profit that topped estimates despite sales that were weaker than both the company and analysts had anticipated. P&G, whose brands include Pampers diapers and Gillette razors, also said it earned 99 cents per share on a core basis in the quarter ended in March, topping analysts' target of 96 cents, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S. Core earnings exclude items such as restructuring charges. P&G forecast fourth-quarter core earnings of 69 cents to 77 cents per share, while analysts were looking for 81 cents. P&G earned 82 cents per share in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2012. Shares of P&G fell to $80.40 in premarket trading after closing at an all-time high of $82.54 on Tuesday. P&G has been trying to reinvigorate itself under Chief Executive Bob McDonald. While products such as Tide Pods have boosted U.S. sales, P&G still needs to figure out the formula for getting products such as Pantene shampoo to stand out among competitors, it said. Net sales decreased in the hair care and skin care business in the latest quarter. Overall sales rose 2 percent to $20.598 billion while analysts were looking for sales of $20.73 billion. The company had forecast 3 percent to 4 percent in sales growth. P&G's organic sales, which strip out the impact of divestitures and foreign exchange changes, grew 3 percent - at the low end of its forecast of 3 percent to 4 percent. On a net basis, the company earned $2.57 billion, or 88 cents per share, in the fiscal third quarter ended in March, up from $2.41 billion, or 82 cents per share, a year earlier. The company had forecast core earnings per share of 90 cents to 96 cents and net earnings of 80 cents to 88 cents. In February 2012, McDonald unveiled a $10 billion restructuring plan, including thousands of job cuts after P&G acknowledged it was not nimble enough, especially in emerging markets. Last April, Wall Street analysts roasted McDonald on a conference call after P&G issued a profit warning and decided to rescind some price increases. The dour performance prompted activist investor Bill Ackman to call for changes last summer when he bought the shares. Ackman's Pershing Square had a 1.02 percent stake in P&G, or 27.95 million shares, as of December, making it the company's eighth-largest shareholder, according to Thomson Reuters data. P&G said it now plans to repurchase $6 billion of its stock this year, at the high end of its prior forecast for $5 billion to $6 billion in buybacks. Last June, P&G decided to hold off on buybacks, but in August quickly reverted back to its usual plan. The stock is currently trading near all-time highs. Reporting by Jessica Wohl; in Chicago; Editing by Jeffrey Benkoe