Sherwood Brands' Fiscal 2001 Nine-Month Net Income Quadruples to a Record $0.70 Per Share Vs. $0.17 Per Share, Before Gain, as Revenue Increases 46% to a Record $54.6 Million Fiscal 2001 Third-Quarter Net Income Is $0.08 Per Share Vs. a Loss of $0.05 Per Share
ROCKVILLE, Md., Jun 12, 2001 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- Sherwood Brands Inc. (ASE: SHD chart, msgs), a manufacturer, marketer and distributor of branded confectionery products and gift items, today announced that net income for the third quarter of fiscal 2001ended April 30, 2001, increased to $296,000, or $0.08 per diluted share.
For the third quarter of fiscal 2000, Sherwood reported a net loss of $186,000, or $0.05 per share. Because the important Easter selling season occurred earlier in this year's third quarter than last year's, revenue for this year's third quarter declined slightly to $14,011,000 from $14,365,000 a year earlier.
For the first nine months of fiscal 2001, net income quadrupled to a record $2,721,000, or $0.70 per diluted share, as revenue increased 46% to a record $54,587,000, meeting the company's earlier expectations of revenue for the full fiscal year. For the first nine months of fiscal 2000, Sherwood reported net income of $620,000, or $0.17 per diluted share (before a one-time gain of $0.07 per diluted share) on revenue of $37,393,000.
Gross margin improved to 21% for this year's third quarter from 17% a year ago, and to 29% for the first nine months of fiscal 2001 from 25% for the same period of fiscal 2000. Operating income as a percentage of sales improved to 9% for this year's first nine months from 3% for the same period last year.
President and Chief Executive Officer Uziel Frydman attributed these gains to higher capacity utilization and the many operational enhancements put in place this year, as well as continued tight control over operating expenses. He added that Sherwood's newest assembly plant in New Bedford, Mass., is fully operational, with a staff of approximately 250, and is delivering the margins the company anticipated.
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