Samsung posts 15% gain in profit

Samsung Electronics Co. posted a fourth-quarter profit that was up 15% from a year earlier.

The South Korean company reported that it had $5.1 billion in operating profit for the October-through-December quarter, missing expectations.

Sales stayed nearly flat at $44.3 billion, also slightly lower than expected. It did not give net profit or other details.

The preliminary results showed that the company’s annual profit dropped for a second time in three years.