Marine Products Corporation Reports Record 2002 Second Quarter Results
|
ATLANTA, Jul 19, 2002 /PRNewswire-FirstCall via COMTEX/ -- Marine Products Corporation (Amex: MPX) announced its unaudited results for the quarter and six months ended June 30, 2002. Marine Products is a leading manufacturer of fiberglass boats under two brand names: sterndrive pleasure boats by Chaparral, including SS Sportboats, Sunesta Deckboats, and Signature Cruisers, and offshore sport fishing boats by Robalo.
For the quarter ended June 30, 2002, Marine Products generated net sales of $47,193,000, a 20 percent increase compared to $39,426,000 last year. The increase in net sales was due to an increase in the number of boats sold as well as a slight increase in the average sales price per boat. Gross profit for the quarter was $10,441,000, a 17 percent increase over the same period in 2001. Gross profit as a percentage of sales was 22.1 percent, a decrease of 0.5 percent from the second quarter of 2001. The company's lower gross margin percentages were due to the continued effect of initiating production of the Robalo product line. While Robalo sales grew during the second quarter and results improved during the period, Robalo's margins are still negatively impacted by low production volumes.
Operating income for the quarter increased to $5,660,000, or a 32 percent increase compared to the second quarter last year. The higher gross profit was offset by higher selling, general and administrative expenses during the period. These expenses increased due to higher production volume during the quarter and the expenses associated with the new Robalo product line.
Net income for the quarter ended June 30, 2002 was $3,611,000 or $0.20 diluted earnings per share, a 27 percent increase compared to $2,852,000 or $0.16 diluted earnings per share in the prior year.
During the quarter the Company repurchased 50,354 shares of its common stock for cash on the open market under its stock buyback program announced in April 2001.
Net sales for the six months ending June 30, 2002 were $85,516,000, a 13 percent increase from the first six months of fiscal 2001. Net income for the six-month period increased 15 percent to $6,098,000 or $0.34 diluted earnings per share compared to $5,317,000 or $0.31 diluted earnings per share last year.
Richard A. Hubbell, Marine Products' Chief Executive Officer stated, "The second quarter is seasonally the strongest quarter of the year for boat manufacturers. We are pleased with this quarter's results that reflect strong demand for our products. This was a record quarter for Marine Products in terms of both revenues and profits. Highlighting the quarter, June was the strongest sales month in our history. We attribute this success to the strength of our dealers, our superior product line and the nation-wide trend towards spending recreational time closer to home with family and friends."
Hubbell continued, "Our average unit sales price rose slightly during the quarter, due to increases in unit sales of our cruisers and Sunesta Deckboats, which have a higher average price than our SS Sportboats. Sales of Robalo offshore sport fishing boats rose from less than one percent of sales in the fourth quarter 2001 to approximately five percent of second quarter 2002 sales.
"We are comfortable with the current level of dealer inventories, although we are cautious about the effect of declining consumer confidence on our sales for the remainder of the calendar year. We will remain diligent about closely monitoring retail demand through the third and fourth quarters, traditionally our slowest quarters.
"Operationally, our focus for third quarter will be starting production in our new cruiser plant. This is a larger plant that will facilitate more efficient production of our larger boats by allowing for a single production line for each of our seven cruiser models.
"We will have a more complete picture of the sales outlook for Chaparral models following our annual dealer conference that will take place in August. At this conference, we will show the new boats for the 2003 model year and take a large portion of orders from our dealers. We will continue to use Marine Products' strong capital position and cash flow generating potential to generate market share growth."
Marine Products is a leading manufacturer of fiberglass boats, including Chaparral pleasure boats and Robalo offshore fishing boats. Marine Products' wholly-owned Chaparral subsidiary is recognized as one of the leading boat builders in the United States as evidenced by 22 Powerboat Magazine awards since 1981, including eight coveted "Boat of the Year" titles. Marine Products Corporation sells 27 Chaparral models from 18 to 35 feet in length, including 14 SS Sportboats, six Sunesta Deckboats, and seven Signature Cruisers. Chaparral boats are distributed through approximately 150 domestic and 25 international dealers. In the fourth quarter of 2001, Marine Products began manufacturing and marketing Robalo offshore fishing boats. The Company's mission is to enhance its customers' boating experience by providing them with high quality, innovative products. Marine Products Corporation's investor Web site can be found on the Internet at www.marineproductscorp.com .
Certain statements and information included in this press release constitute "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such forward-looking statements include statements regarding Chaparral's ability to gain market share, the outlook for the industry, and our ability to continue to expand our product lines and increase production efficiency. These statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of Marine Products Corporation to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied in such forward-looking statements. These risks include the level of consumer confidence and uncertainty regarding sales seasonality. Additional discussion of factors that could cause the actual results to differ materially from management's projections, forecasts, estimates and expectations is contained in Marine Products' Form 10-K, filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission for the year ending December 31, 2001.
** See attachment for entire release ** |
Jul 19, 2002 |
Give Feedback |
|