Improved performance across all of Interface businesses

28 Apr '11

3 min read

Interface Inc, a worldwide floorcoverings company and global leader in sustainability, announced results for the first quarter ended April 3, 2011.

Sales for the first quarter of 2011 were $245.4 million, compared with sales of $217.2 million in the first quarter of 2010, an increase of 13.0%. Operating income for the 2011 first quarter was $21.5 million, or 8.8% of sales. This compares with operating income (excluding a $3.1 million restructuring charge) of $16.9million, or 7.8% of sales, in the first quarter of the prior year. Including the restructuring charge, operating income in the first quarter of 2010 was $13.8 million, or 6.3% of sales.

Net income attributable to Interface, Inc. in the 2011 first quarter was $9.8 million, or $0.15 per diluted share. When adjusted to exclude the aforementioned restructuring charge, as well as expenses of $1.1million relating to the Company's previously-announced and completed bond redemption, net income attributable to Interface, Inc. in the 2010 first quarter was $4.9 million, or $0.08 per diluted share. Including all items in the 2010 first quarter, net income attributable to Interface, Inc. was $1.9 million, or $0.03 per diluted share.

"We are pleased with our first quarter results, which reflect continued strong marketplace demand trends and operational execution," said Daniel T. Hendrix, President and Chief Executive Officer.

"The corporate office market has continued its recovery, particularly in the United States and Australia, and we continue to benefit from our market diversification strategy as the non-office commercial segment experienced solid growth during the quarter. Geographically, we saw growth across all our sales regions, with India, China and Eastern Europe exhibiting particular strength, and the ramp-up of our new modular carpet plant in China is progressing as expected.

“Furthermore, our consumer business continues to grow through its focus on direct sales channels, particularly its retail store locations, including our newest FLOR store in the SoHo district of New York City following its highly successful opening in March. We plan to open our fourth FLOR store in Atlanta later this week, and are excited about the opportunities we see in this market. Overall, we are off to a good start in 2011."

Patrick C. Lynch, Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, commented, "Our results for the 2011 first quarter reflect growth and improved performance across all of our businesses. Sales growth continues to be strong, and we generated substantial improvements in profitability despite the costs associated with the commissioning of our new China plant and our ongoing investments in sales, marketing and other areas, all of which will benefit the business over the longer term."

Mr. Hendrix concluded, "Demand trends remained strong during our seasonally weakest quarter, and we generated double-digit growth in orders in what remains a challenging, but steadily improving, market environment. Furthermore, operational efficiencies led to the expansion of our overall gross profit margin by over 160 basis points compared to the first quarter last year.

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