Sales at Applied fall 6.4 percent in quarter
Applied Industrial Technologies reported net sales for its fiscal fourth quarter were $634.0 million, a decrease of 6.4% compared with $677.5 million in the same quarter a year ago.
The overall sales decrease for the quarter reflects a 2.4% increase from acquisition-related volume, offset by a 7.6% decrease in underlying operations and a negative 1.2% foreign currency translation impact. Of the 7.6% decrease in underlying operations, 3.9% is attributable to sales in traditional core operations with the remainder associated with sales in operations serving the upstream oil and gas markets.
Net income for the quarter was $26.1 million, or 66 cents per share, compared with $28.0 million, or 70 cents per share, in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2015.
For the full year, net sales were $2.52 billion, a decrease of 8.4% compared with $2.75 billion last year. Net income was $29.6 million, or 75 cents per share, compared with $115.5 million, or $2.80 per share, in the prior year.
"Our fourth quarter and full-year results reflect an economic environment that continues to be challenging. Sequentially, fourth quarter demand was generally flat compared to the third quarter, including reduced demand in oil and gas, mining and other industrial end markets," said president and chief executive officer Neil A. Schrimsher.
"Across Applied, we have opportunities to advance our business in the current industrial economy and position ourselves for improvement in long-term performance. We are continuing to build on our strengths via investments in technology, talent initiatives and strategic acquisitions, as evidenced by our recent acquisition of Seals Unlimited. This is an excellent addition that enhances our bearings and power transmission platform in Eastern Canada. We are also excited about the new Applied.com e-commerce site that will launch later this month, and we look forward to providing our stakeholders with updates on these and other initiatives as the new year progresses," he added.
INDUSTRIAL SUPPLY MAGAZINE
The March/April issue of Industrial Supply magazine features an in-depth cover story about Joyce Lansdale and Vallen. Plus, we're featuring articles by contributing writers Dirk Beveridge, Frank Hurtte, and David Kahle, as well as interviews with numerous product and distribution industry experts.
