Interceramic Second Quarter 2004 Results
15 Julho 2004 - 12:11AM
PR Newswire (US)
Interceramic Second Quarter 2004 Results CHIHUAHUA, Mexico, July 14
/PRNewswire/ -- The second quarter of 2004 saw Interceramic posting
significant improvements over second quarter results in 2003, and
marking gains over a lackluster first quarter of the year as well.
Record quarterly sales of US $84.8 million topped sales of US $72.2
million in the same quarter of 2003 by 17.5 percent. Larger sales
volume and a better mix of products sold, pushed our gross income
for the quarter up by 23.3 percent over last year. For the first
six months of the year, consolidated sales are up by 10.3 percent
to US $161.3 million compared to US $146.3 million in the first
semester of 2003. We also moved much more product during the second
quarter of 2004 than we had in the same period of 2003, increasing
by 15.0 percent. In a particularly welcome development, growth in
both sales and product volume occurred in each of our major markets
of Mexico and the United States. In Mexico, our sales for the
second quarter jumped by 22.3 percent from the second quarter of
2003 to US $46.3 million from the US $37.9 million posted last
year. The amount of product sold by the Company in Mexico during
the second quarter of 2004 increased by 18.3 percent over the
second quarter of 2003. For the first six months of 2004, sales in
Mexico are up 10.6 percent over the first half of 2003, to US $88.3
million from US $79.9 million in 2003, while over the same
comparative periods, product volume in Mexico is up by 11.4 from
last year. In the International markets, we hit a record level of
sales, and at US $38.4 million for the second quarter of 2004 we
bettered sales for the same period of 2003 by 12.2 percent. The
amount of product sold in the International markets increased as
well, up by 9.9 percent over last year. For the six months,
International sales of US $73.0 million are 9.9 percent higher than
in the first six months of 2003, and the amount of product sold
over the first six months of 2004 in the International markets grew
by 7.1 percent over the first semester of 2003. While our operating
expenses have been increasing over past periods in anticipation of
substantially improved sales growth, in the second quarter of 2004
Interceramic attained a level of sales that kept well ahead of the
ramped up expenditures. As a result, our operating income for the
second quarter of 2004 increased by 41.3 percent over the second
quarter of 2003, hitting US $6.6 million compared to US $4.7
million in the second quarter last year. We also recorded our
highest EBITDA since the second quarter of 2002, and at US $11.1
million it is a 28.5 percent improvement over EBITDA of US $8.6
million in the second quarter last year. Looking at the first
six-months of 2004, operating income of US $11.0 million is less
than two percent behind operating income of US $11.1 million
recorded in the first six months of 2003. At US $19.7 million,
EBITDA for the first half of 2004 is 4.9 percent higher than our
EBITDA of US $18.8 million in the first six months last year. In
June, we opened our newest "Interceramic Tile and Stone Gallery"
store in San Diego, California, the latest effort in our strategy
of covering the immense Southern California market with high-margin
generating company-owned stores. In Mexico, the second quarter of
the year was the first full quarter of consolidated results from
our newly-acquired franchise distributors in the Chihuahua and
Monterrey markets, which bring considerable sales and margin to our
Mexican operations as well. Construction of our new tile plant in
Chihuahua is proceeding, and we intend on devoting our efforts over
the remainder of the year to capitalizing on the improvements and
gains we have made over the past few months to our benefit in
forthcoming quarters. We thank our shareholders and customers for
their continued support, and we look forward to our remaining
challenges and a strong finish for the year. Oscar E. Almeida
Chairman of the Board Victor D. Almeida Chief Executive Officer
This document contains forward-looking statements within the
meaning of the United States Securities Exchange Act of 1934 which
reflect the Company's views about future events and financial
performance. Actual events and results could differ materially from
those stated herein and, accordingly, undue reliance should not be
placed upon them. The forward-looking statements speak only of
their dates and the Company undertakes no obligation to update or
revise any of them. DATASOURCE: Interceramic CONTACT: Investor
Relations - Luis Fernando Cano B., +52-614-429-1264, for
Interceramic Web site: http://www.interceramic.com/
Copyright