(Source: Newsday, Melville, N.Y.)
By James Bernstein, Newsday, Melville, N.Y.
Jan. 8--In the first of what will be a flood of quarterly earnings reports from Long Island businesses, Melville-based tool distributor MSC Industrial Direct Co. -- often viewed as a barometer for the local economy -- Thursday said sales and profits fell in its fiscal first quarter, which ended Nov. 29, compared to the same period last year.
MSC, Long Island's 10th largest company in terms of sales, also predicted a weak second quarter amid deteriorating market conditions.
The company said in an announcement before the market opened for trading that it earned $45.1 million in its latest quarter, compared with profits of $46.9 million in the same period last year.
Sales in the latest quarter were $433 million, compared with sales of $437.6 million in the year-ago period.
On a per-share basis, MSC said it earned 72 cents, compared with EPS of 70 cents in similar period a year ago.
Analysts had been expecting quarterly EPS of 67 cents.
MSC chief executive David Sandler said in a statement that the company's quarterly results were "solid," but added that ". . . market conditions continued to deteriorate during the quarter as the economic downturn deepened."
"We are operating in one of the most challenging markets ever experienced," Sandler said. "Feedback from our customers indicates that conditions continue to deteriorate, with many reporting declines in revenues and orders and strict initiatives to eliminate nonessential spending."
Market conditions look to worsen in the company's fiscal second quarter. Sandler said that "a broader section of our customer base [is] now feeling the impact of the economic crises."
MSC forecast EPS of 39 cents a share in the second quarter on revenues of $412.6 million. Analysts had been expecting EPS of 62 cents.
Shares which trade under MSM, fell $1.06 Wednesday, to close at $35.68. They are off 3 percent this year.
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