BOUCHERVILLE, Quebec -- Uni-Select has reported sales from continuing operations of $384.2 million for the second quarter of 2009, up 20.9 percent over sales of $318 million for the same period of 2008. The company's sales increase is due mainly to acquisitions conducted in the previous quarters and to the currency variation. Net income from continuing operations reached $16 million or 81 cents per share, for the second quarter, compared with $13.2 million or 67 cents per share, for the corresponding quarter last year. Net income, including results from discontinued activities, totaled $15.4 million or 78 cents per share, compared with $12.7 million or 64 cents per share last year. Excluding the impact of the exchange rate variation, sales would have risen 12.8 percent and net income would have been 74 cents a share for the quarter, an increase of 15.6 percent.

For the first half of 2009, sales for continuing activities reached $735 million, an increase of $148.6 million or 25.3 percent, compared with the same period in 2008. Earnings from continuing activities stood at $25 million or $1.27 per share, compared with $20.1 million or $1.02 per share for the first half of 2008.

Second quarter sales for Automotive Group USA reached $241.5 million compared with $168.2 million for the second quarter of 2008. The acquisitions completed in recent quarters contributed $51.6 million to higher sales in the quarter, to which should be added the favorable impact of the exchange rate variation. Excluding the items mentioned above, organic growth was neutral in the second quarter. The operating margin for the Group remained stable at 7.1 percent. However, on a comparative basis, excluding the impact of the latest acquisitions whose integration is at an early stage, the operating margin was 7.6 percent, up 0.4 percent over 2008 due to the effects of continuous improvement programs on margins and costs. For the first six months of 2009, sales were $474.5 million a 49.2 percent increase over the same period in 2008. The operating margin, excluding the recent acquisitions, showed improvement, going from 6.7 percent to 7.1 percent in 2009.

Automotive Group Canada experienced organic sales growth of 0.1 percent in the second quarter of 2009, offset by the effect of the disposal of 10 stores earlier in the quarter. The Group's sales stood at $142.6 million compared to $149.5 million in the same period of 2008. The Group's operating margin reached 10.1 percent, up from 8.7 percent in the second quarter of last year. For the first half of 2009, sales were $260.5 million, down 2.9 percent from the same period in 2008. For purposes of comparison, excluding the store disposals mentioned above, the decline was 0.3 percent. The operating margin stood at 8.6 percent in the first half compared to 7.2 percent in 2008.

"In addition to our financial performance for the quarter, we are pleased with the results of our various operational and strategic initiatives," said Richard Roy, president and chief executive officer of Uni-Select. "Recent acquisitions have contributed broadly to improving our quarterly results. Our cost improvement program instituted in 2008 that includes integration and reorganization initiatives, should increase our margins and earnings in the second half of 2009.

Roy continued: "Optimization of our assets led to the sale of 10 stores in Canada, the closing of several stores in the United States, an orderly reduction in inventories, and the sale of the assets of the Heavy Duty division. This last measure is part of our strategic plan as we intend to focus our efforts on the distribution of replacement parts for light vehicles. The orderly reduction in the asset base will continue throughout the second half of the calendar year. We shall remain expedient and alert in looking for opportunities that would enable us to grow both in Canada and in the United States."

Editor’s Note: Unless indicated otherwise, all figures in this release are in Canadian dollars.