- This topic has 0 replies, 1 voice, and was last updated 9 years, 9 months ago by
.
-
Posts
-
United Stationers posts record Q1 sales
May
2007 — Deerfield (IL): United Stationers has reported record Q1 net
sales of $1.2 billion, up 3.9 percent from $1.1 billion in the same
period last year. Diluted EPS rose to a record high of $0.90, up 61
percent from the prior-year’s EPS of $0.56. Sales of Jan/San supplies
and cut sheet paper were the strongest contributors to growth.President
and CEO Dick Gochnauer said: “We began the year with record first
quarter sales and a significant improvement in operating margin.
Favourable results from our investment in enhancing margin management,
combined with holding the line on costs, contributed to our strong
financial performance. We are in the process of developing detailed
plans and strategies to remove approximately $100 million in annual
costs over the five-year period beginning in 2007. These actions,
combined with our value drivers, should allow us to achieve United’s
long-term financial objective of increasing earnings per share by 12
percent to 15 percent per year.”Operating income for Q1 was $50.9
million, up from $37.9 million in 2006. Diluted EPS from continuing
operations were $0.90, versus $0.65 in the prior-year quarter.During
the quarter, the company repurchased approximately 1.8 million shares
of its common stock for $101.4 million.Gochnauer continued: “We are in
the process of reviewing financing alternatives that will give us the
flexibility to continue our share repurchase programme. We view share
repurchases as an excellent way to return value to our shareholders.”We
believe the company is well positioned to deliver strong financial
results in 2007. Following our record sales in the first quarter, sales
growth for the second quarter continues to trend in the low single
digits over last year.”Significant progress is being made in our
efforts to deliver profitable sales growth, drive out waste, expand our
private brands, optimise our assets, leverage the potential of our
Sweet Paper acquisition, and enhance our marketing capabilities. The
success of these six key value drivers is important to our overall
strategy,” he added.”Our goal is to achieve solid financial performance
this year through focused efforts on increasing sales, managing gross
margins, controlling costs and improving cash flow. These collective
efforts should lead to enhanced shareholder value.
- You must be logged in to reply to this topic.