Middleby reports earnings down, sales up
The Middleby Corp., a global manufacturer of food service equipment, today reported that earnings are slightly down and sales are up over last year at this time.
The Elgin company reported that third quarter earnings were $74,671,000 or $1.31 per share over last year's report of $75,851,000 or $1.33 per share. Net sales this quarter were at $593 million, up 3.3 percent over last year.
The company said that its commercial food service equipment group saw slower sales due to the timing of purchases from its major restaurant chain customers.
"We have a healthy pipeline of future opportunities with existing and new large chain customers and remain confident these opportunities will translate into future revenues," said CEO Selim A. Bassoul. "The pipeline of innovative products is also strong, positioning us for long-term growth as we provide solutions addressing changing market trends and allowing for further expansion in developing international markets."
Bassoul added that the residential kitchen equipment group saw a third quarter sales decline that reflects the impact of lower revenues at the AGA Group due to acquisition integration initiatives. "In an effort to simplify those businesses and reduce costs, we have eliminated unprofitable products and reduced price discounting for noncore business within that group. At Viking our new products are receiving outstanding reviews and our sales team and partners are very excited about how they are being received in the market place. Additionally, we have continued to make significant investments in the Viking brand with the establishment of two residential brand centers in New York and Chicago, updating displays of new products at our dealer partner showrooms and the addition of company sales personnel.
"We believe we are positioned to return to growth at the Viking brand, however in the current quarter we continued to realize a sales decline as we overcome the impact of the prior year product recall and legacy issues related to products manufactured during the previous ownership."