WEST WARWICK, R.I.–(BUSINESS WIRE)– Astro-Med, Inc. (ALOT), a leading manufacturer of specialty high-tech printing systems and data acquisition products, today reported net sales of $23.1 million for the three months ended November 1, 2014, an increase of 27.3% from the same period a year earlier. Net income for the fiscal third quarter of 2015 was $1.6 million, or $0.20 per diluted share, compared with net income of $1.1 million, or $0.14 per diluted share, for the same period a year earlier.
“By concentrating on three key areas – product development, manufacturing efficiency and geographic expansion – we are achieving increasing levels of operational and financial success,” said Astro-Med President and Chief Executive Officer, Gregory A. Woods. “Our third-quarter performance reflected these efforts. Solid demand across all product lines generated record third-quarter net sales, as our QuickLabel Systems (QLS) and Test & Measurement (T&M) segments increased approximately 22% and 39%, respectively. Both our domestic and international sales channels contributed nicely to the Company's top-line growth.”
“Higher revenue, combined with the success of our ongoing lean manufacturing initiatives, contributed to a 340 basis-point increase in our gross margin, which grew to 43.9% in the quarter,” Woods said. “Even as we stepped up investments in marketing and R&D, our operating profit increased to $2.6 million, or 11.1% of net sales, from $1.2 million, or 6.5% of net sales, in the third quarter of fiscal 2014. This demonstrates continued improvement in our operating leverage.”
For the nine months ended November 1, 2014, Astro-Med reported net sales of $66.3 million, an increase of 30.3% over the prior year sales of $50.9 million for the same period. The Company reported net income of $4.1 million, or $0.52 per diluted share, for the first nine months of fiscal 2015 compared with $1.4 million, or $0.18 per diluted share, for the same period of fiscal 2014. The fiscal 2014 results included a reserve established to address a non-compliant component in a limited number of ToughWriter Printers. The after-tax cost of this reserve was equal to $0.06 per diluted share. Excluding the impact of this reserve, the Company's net income on a non-GAAP basis for the nine months ended November 2, 2013 was $1.8 million, or $0.24 per diluted share.
