Ennis, Inc., the parent company of industry suppliers Folder Express (PPAI 354129, S1), Independent Folders (PPAI 111993, S2) and Admore, Inc. (PPAI 111144, S10), reports an almost nine-percent revenue increase for its first quarter, which ended May 31.
Among the highlights, the Midlothian, Texas-based company is reporting revenues of $96.9 million for the quarter compared to $89 million for the same quarter last year, an increase of $7.9 million or 8.9 percent, and a gross profit margin for the quarter of 30.1 percent, compared to 26.9 percent in 2020, an increase of 12 percent. The company also notes that excluding sales from its Infoseal acquisition, organic sales increased $2.7 million, or three percent in the quarter. Net earnings for the quarter were $7.3 million, or $0.28 per diluted share, as compared to $4.2 million, or $0.16 per diluted share, for the same quarter last year.
“Our results for the quarter were within our expectations and our management team continued to successfully navigate the challenges presented by the COVID-19 pandemic,” says Keith Walters, chairman, president and CEO. “Our gross profit margin improved over the sequential quarter, increasing from 29.6 percent to 30.1 percent. Our EBITDA [earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization] increased over the sequential quarter, $12.4 million to $15.1 million, representing 13.8 percent and 15.5 percent of sales, respectively. While our revenues continue to be impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, some of our customers are seeing sales return to normalized levels. We continue to monitor incoming order volumes so that we can proactively adjust our costs accordingly. Our recent acquisition of InfoSeal increased our sales by $5.2 million and added $0.02 to our diluted earnings per share. We are seeing a tight labor market and some inflationary pressures through increased pricing from our suppliers, but it is our intention to attempt to adjust customer pricing over time to maintain our gross profit margin. Our strong vendor relationship with our paper supplier allows us to meet customer demand for their business product needs even though paper production in the print and writing segment has declined domestically in recent months.”
Walters adds, “We continued to invest in our business during the quarter, including our most recent acquisition of the assets and business of Ameriprint Corporation, a trade printer specializing in custom-printed documents, barcoding, integrated products and business forms. Ameriprint, strategically located in the Chicago area, brings 30 years of print industry experience and added capabilities and expertise to our expanding product offering, including barcoding and variable imaging, closed on May 31, 2021.
“Our financial strength, including a current ratio—current assets divided by current liabilities—of 4.0, cash balance of $81.3 million and available line of credit of $99.4 million allows us to be well-positioned for the future to be able to withstand unforeseen adversities as well as take advantage of acquisition opportunities. Our strong balance sheet and solid cash flow make it possible for us to continue our long history of returning value to shareholders through our quarterly dividends, which we recently increased to twenty-five cents ($0.25) per share for our quarterly dividend payable August 9, 2021, up from twenty-two-and-one half-cents ($0.225) per share in recent quarters, or an increase of 11.1 percent.”
