DES PLAINES, Ill.-- Lawson Products, Inc., a distributor of products and services to the MRO and OEM marketplaces, recently announced results for the fourth quarter and full year of 2010.
Highlights:
-- Net sales grew 13.1% over the prior year quarter to $80.0 million
-- Quarterly operating income increased to $1.2 million, an improvement of $2.3 million over the same quarter last year-- At December 31, 2010, cash on hand was $40.6 million with no debt outstanding
"During the quarter, we continued to execute our long-term growth plan and advanced several key operational initiatives. We sold Rutland Tool & Supply, which generated $11.0 million of cash and furthers our strategic focus on growing Lawson's core MRO business," commented Thomas Neri, president and chief executive officer. "We also made significant progress towards implementing our new Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) platform and accelerating sales productivity. Our average daily sales in the fourth quarter were $1.312 million, representing a 2.9% sequential increase over the third quarter and a 13.1% improvement year-over-year. I am pleased with our execution during the quarter and remain confident that we are building a strong foundation for sustainable and profitable long-term growth."
Fourth Quarter 2010 Results
Net sales for the fourth quarter of 2010 were $80.0 million, a 13.1% increase compared to $70.8 million in the prior year period. This increase was primarily due to continued growth from the Company's strategic accounts and governmental and automotive customers. The Company continued to receive a positive response to its tailored solutions, new product offerings and technical expertise.
Gross profit for the period increased to $49.8 million or 62.2% of sales, compared to $42.9 million or 60.6% of sales over the prior year fourth quarter. The Company reclassified outbound freight expenses from selling, general and administrative (SG&A) expenses to cost of goods sold for all periods presented.Full Year 2010 Results
Net sales for the year ended December 31, 2010 were $316.8 million, a 5.0% improvement over net sales of $301.8 million for the full year of 2009. Gross profit increased by $9.3 million year-over-year to $194.8 million. Gross profit as a percentage of sales remained constant at 61.5% for 2010 and 2009. Outbound freight expenses have been reclassified from SG&A expenses to cost of goods sold for all periods presented.
Operating income for the year ended December 31, 2010 increased to $16.9 million from $1.4 million in 2009. The Company reported income from continuing operations of $9.6 million, or $1.13 per share of common stock, in 2010 compared to income from continuing operations of $1.9 million, or $0.22 per share, in 2009. The $1.13 earnings per share benefited by $0.15 from a favorable legal settlement of $4.1 million and the $1.7 million gain on the disposal of property partially offset by severance of $3.6 million. Adjusted non-GAAP operating income for the year was $14.8 million compared to $8.1 million in 2009.
Net income for 2010 increased to $6.9 million, or $0.81 per share, versus a net loss of $2.7 million, or $0.32 per share, for 2009 including a loss from discontinued operations of $0.31 and $0.54 per diluted share, respectively.
OutlookThomas Neri, president and chief executive officer commented, "We continued to advance our strategic initiatives throughout 2010. We made significant progress in our plan to create the right platform on which to evolve our business in the coming years. We enhanced our sales model and increased our sales productivity by successfully converting our district sales managers to full-time employees. This effort, combined with our ongoing ERP initiative and other strategic measures, including the launch of a new web-site, will ensure Lawson is a much more efficient, responsive and customer-focused organization.
We will continue to strengthen our foundation and position Lawson to grow aggressively. Our team has demonstrated that it can successfully implement our strategic initiatives. I remain confident in our ability to execute Lawson's long-term strategy to significantly grow our market share within the large and fragmented MRO marketplace."
