McCormick & Company – MKC – Reported strong sales and profit growth
McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC), a global leader in flavor, today reported strong sales and profit growth in the second quarter of fiscal year 2012 and reaffirmed its 2012 outlook.
- MKC Grew second quarter net sales 11% with contributions from acquisitions, pricing actions and increased volume and product mix.
- MKC Reported earnings per share of $0.60 for the second quarter, a 9% increase from the year-ago period.
- Generated cash flow from operations of $144 million through the first half of fiscal year 2012.
- Reaffirmed projected 2012 earnings per share of $3.01 to $3.06.
Alan D. Wilson, Chairman, President and CEO, commented, “We achieved a double-digit increase in sales and strong profit growth in our second quarter. In a difficult economic environment, McCormick is delivering financial results that demonstrate the strength of our brands and our customer relationships in markets around the world. Acquisitions, new products, marketing programs and expanded distribution are driving sales growth in each geographic region, with particular strength in emerging markets which accounted for 14% of second quarter sales.
“Across all of our businesses, we continue to face volatile material costs. As reflected in our gross profit margin, which was comparable with the second quarter of 2011, our pricing actions and cost savings from our Comprehensive Continuous Improvement (CCI) program are effectively offsetting the impact of higher material costs. CCI is also helping to fuel our growth and through the first half of 2012, we increased our brand marketing support by 15%. This increase, along with product innovation and other initiatives to grow sales have created momentum as we head into the second half of 2012.”
McCormick’s second quarter sales rose 11%, and in local currency the increase was 13% when compared to the year-ago period. In local currency, acquisitions completed in 2011 added about half of this increase, while pricing actions taken in response to higher material costs and volume and product mix also contributed to the increase. Operating income rose 11% to $121 million from $109 million in the second quarter of 2011. The favorable impact of higher sales and cost savings from McCormick’s CCI program more than offset increased material costs and a $4 million increase in brand marketing support. Income from unconsolidated operations declined $2 million due largely to the impact of unfavorable foreign currency exchange rates on McCormick’s joint venture in Mexico.
About McCormick – MKC
McCormick & Company (MKC), Incorporated is a global leader in flavor. With more than $3.5 billion in annual sales, the company manufactures, markets and distributes spices, seasoning mixes, condiments and other flavorful products to the entire food industry – retail outlets, food manufacturers and foodservice businesses.
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Post Written By: Ed Liston
Ed Liston is a senior contributing editor at TheStockMarketWatch.com. An active market watcher and investor, Ed guides an independent team of experienced analysts and writes for multiple stock trader publications. He is widely quoted in various financial publications on the Internet. When Ed is not writing about stocks, investing in stocks, talking about stocks, or otherwise doing something stock related, he likes to go sailing and fishing in his yacht.
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