Applied sales and income dips
Despite showing improvement in its fiscal fourth quarter, sales and income for Applied Industrial Technologies dropped in 2014.
For the 12 months ended June 30, sales were $2.460 billion, essentially flat compared to $2.462 billion last year. Net income fell by 4.5 percent to $112.8 million, or $2.67 per share, compared with $118.1 million, or $2.78 per share, in the prior year.
Net sales for the fourth quarter were $654.6 million, an increase of 2.2% compared with $640.5 million in the same quarter a year ago. Net income for the quarter was $29.7 million, or 71 cents per share, compared with $32.3 million, or 76 cents per share, in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2013.
"Fiscal 2014 was a significant year of transition with our ERP deployments and acquisition activity," said president and chief executive officer Neil A. Schrimsher. "We enter fiscal 2015 with a great deal of momentum, especially when considering our recent acquisitions of Knox Oil Field Supply and Reliance Industrial Products. We have significantly enhanced our capabilities to serve North American oil and gas markets, and these acquisitions will add approximately $240 million of annual sales to our fiscal 2015 results."
He added that the company expects to see improvements in service center operations and fluid power businesses, supported by an improving industrial economic environment. For fiscal 2015, the company is forecasting a sales increase of 13% to 16% and earnings per share in the range of $2.95 to $3.20 per share. Recent acquisitions are expected to provide a 10% sales increase in fiscal 2015.
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.
