A.M. Castle’s Sales, Earnings Rise in 3Q
A.M. Castle & Co., Oak Brook, Ill., reported net income of $3.8 million in the company’s third quarter, well ahead of the $100,000 reported during the same period in 2010. The global distributor of specialty metals and plastic products reported net sales of $294.9 million during the quarter, up 20.4 percent from last year’s third quarter.
Castle’s consolidated net sales totaled $850.2 million for the year to date, an increase of 20.1 percent compared to 2010. Net income for the first three quarters of 2011 hit $10.2 million, compared to a net loss of $4.1 million for the same period last year.
“We saw continued momentum across our businesses, which drove sales gains and earnings growth this quarter, reflecting the continued improvement in demand within many of our key end-use markets including oil and gas, mining and heavy equipment, general industrial markets and automotive,” said Michael Goldberg, president and CEO of A.M. Castle.
Metals segment tons sold per day for the third quarter were up 20.3 percent vs. third-quarter 2010, and up 3.5 percent from the previous quarter. During August and September, overall sales per day reached their highest levels since January 2009.
“Macroeconomic data suggest ongoing strength in our key markets and industrial markets as a whole. Overall the markets we serve continued to demonstrate growth in the third quarter. However, we remain cautious as sovereign debt issues continue to cast a cloud over the economy,” Goldberg said.
The company also announced its plans to open a new warehouse and processing facility in the United Kingdom to service BAE Systems and its joint strike fighter and Typhoon programs. The new center is intended to strengthen processing capabilities to serve the entire European aerospace market.