Uni-Select Inc., a leading distributor of automotive products in Canada and parent of FinishMaster Inc., a leading distributor of paint and related products in the United States, has reported its financial results for the third quarter ended Sept. 30, 2015.
“I am very pleased with the performance displayed by our automotive and paint and related products businesses in the third quarter and particularly delighted that both sectors are delivering healthy organic growth, said Henry Buckley, president and CEO of Uni-Select.” We now turn to the fourth quarter with confidence that our continued focus on growth initiatives, accretive acquisitions and our commitment to the continued expansion of a network of corporate stores will all contribute to our successes in the months ahead.
Consolidated sales for the third quarter reached $276.2 million, a 40.6 percent decrease mainly due to the sale of the net assets of Uni-Select USA Inc. and Beck/Arnley Worldparts Inc. and also due to a weaker Canadian dollar. The decline was partly compensated by additional sales from recent acquisitions and organic growth. On an organic basis, consolidated sales grew 4 percent, fueled namely by the recruitment of new customers in the paint and related products segment and by the success of the corporation’s fill rate commitment to its customers in the automotive products segment.
Net earnings grew by 6.1 percent to $15.7 million from $14.8 million last year, while adjusted earnings grew slightly by 0.4 percent. EPS and adjusted EPS are 73 cents (70 cents and 74 cents, respectively, in 2014).
Sales for the automotive products segment declined to $114.2 million, from $316.5 million in the prior year. Excluding the impact of the net assets sold and the weaker Canadian dollar, this alone accounted for 17.5 percent of the decrease, sales decreased by 9.3 percent compared to 2014, partly offset by organic growth and sales from recent acquisitions. Segment organic sales grew 4.4 percent in the third quarter, driven by an increased focus on customer needs through enhanced product offering and pricing increases.
The paint and related products segment recorded sales of $162 million, up 8.8 percent from 2014, or 3.8 percent organically as a result of the recruitment of new customers.
Consolidated sales for the first nine months of 2015 decreased by 19.2 percent to $1,096.2 million, representing an increase of 0.2 percent when excluding the impact of the sales from the net assets sold, a performance explained by the same factors as for the third quarter. On an organic basis, sales grew 3.2 percent in the first nine months of the year.
Uni-Select recorded a net loss of $54.2 million in the first nine months of the year while adjusted earnings grew 9.2 percent to $45.8 million ($2.14 on a per share basis) from $41.9 million ($1.97 on a per share basis) for the corresponding period last year.
