Daimler Q4 earnings fall short, shares down

German carmaker Daimler posted fourth-quarter earnings that missed forecasts and announced a bigger-than-anticipated dividend payout for 2010 and an upbeat outlook for 2011.         

Its shares were down 3.1% at 1002 GMT.

"The numbers are bad across the board. And now the share is taking a merciless beating from the market. Even the higher dividend and the positive outlook can't help the company at the moment," a Frankfurt-based trader said.

Daimler posted fourth-quarter earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) of €1.56 billion ($2.1 billion), compared with a forecast for 2.05 billion in a Reuters poll. 

The dividend was set at €1.85, compared with a forecast for €1.75.