WD-40 posted net income of $15.9 million for the quarter ending Feb. 28, up more than 7 percent from the year-earlier period, with net sales virtually unchanged at $101.3 million.
Earnings per diluted share reached $1.14, up from $1.05 in the year-earlier period. San Diego-based WD-40’s fiscal year goes from Sept. 1 to Aug. 31.
Net sales decreased more than 2 percent in the Americas to $43.9 million, increased by about 3 percent in Europe, Middle East and Africa to $40.9 million, and declined 1 percent in Asia-Pacific to $16.5 million, compared to the year-earlier quarter.
The company attributed the sales decrease in the Americas primarily to lower sales of maintenance products. The decline in sales was partially offset by higher sales of WD-40 Specialist in the United States and higher sales of maintenance products in Canada and Latin America, driven by the timing of customer orders and expanded distribution.
We experienced two events in the United States this quarter that resulted in a 6 percent decline in sales of WD-40 Multi-Use Product in the country compared to last year, WD-40 President and CEO Garry Ridge said in the company’s earnings news release. This decline in sales was driven by the rotation of products that periodically occurs in the warehouse club channel as well as some delayed promotions with a key U.S. customer. Ridge noted the delayed promotions were directly tied to proactive price increases the company put in place last June to offset rising commodity prices. Though necessary, pricing decisions like this can cause events, which are disruptive, he added.
In Europe, the Middle East and Africa, the higher net sales was attributed mainly to higher sales of homecare and cleaning products.
The company said the improvement in Asia-Pacific net sales was primarily due to a decline in sales of maintenance products in the Australia and the Asia distributor markets.