Taiga's strong performance continues, with Q2 profits up by 42%

BURNABY, BC, Nov. 6, 2014 /CNW/ - Taiga Building Products Ltd. ("Taiga" or the "Company") today reported its financial results for the three and six months ended September 30, 2014.

Second Quarter Ended September 30, 2014 Earnings Results    

Sales for the quarter ended September 30, 2014 were $383.6 million compared to $344.9 million in the same period last year. The 11% increase in sales was primarily the result of higher lumber price and increased sales from California operations.  

Gross margin for the quarter ended September 30, 2014 increased to $34.4 million from $29.7 million over the same period last year. Gross margin percentage for the quarter increased to 9.0% compared to 8.6%. The gross margin percentage from last year's second quarter was negatively impacted by a steep decline in commodity prices.

Taiga's net earnings for the quarter ended September 30, 2014 increased to $5.7 million from $4.0 million over the same period last year.

EBITDA for the quarter ended September 30, 2014 was $13.7 million compared to $12.7 million for the same period last year.   

Six Months Ended September 30, 2014 Earnings Results

Sales for the six months ended September 30, 2014 were $758.3 million compared to $680.7 million over the same period last year. The increase in sales by $77.6 million or 11% was largely due to higher sales from US and export operations selling into the United States and Asian markets. In addition, the first quarter's sales were positively impacted by the release of pent-up customer demand created by the severe winter conditions experienced in the previous fiscal year.

Gross margin for the six months ended September 30, 2014 increased to $67.5 million from $55.1 million over the same period last year. Gross margin percentage for the six months increased to 8.9% compared to 8.1% over the same period last year. The gross margin percentage was lower in last year's period due to a steep decline in commodity prices.

Net earnings for the six month period ended September 30, 2014 were $11.2 million compared to $5.5 million for the same period last year.

EBITDA for the six months ended September 30, 2014 increased to $29.9 million compared to $22.3 million for the same period last year.

 

 

Condensed Consolidated Statement of Earnings
For the Three Months Ended
		September 30,
(in thousands of Canadian dollars, except for per share amounts)		2014	2013
Sales		383,559	344,924
Gross margin		34,440	29,722
Distribution expense		5,257	4,441
Selling and administration expense		16,246	13,653
Finance expense		1,535	1,769
Subordinated debt interest expense		4,089	4,089
Other expense (income)		279	(85)
Earnings before income taxes		7,034	5,855
Income tax expense		1,374	1,881
Net earnings		5,660	3,974
Net earnings per share^(1)		0.17	0.12
EBITDA^(2)		13,679	12,732

The following is the reconciliation of net earnings to EBITDA:

		September 30,
(in thousands of Canadian dollars)		2014		2013
Net earnings		5,660		3,974
Income tax expense		1,374		1,881
Finance and subordinated debt interest expense		5,624		5,858
Amortization		1,021		1,019
EBITDA		13,679		12,732

 

For the Six Months Ended
		September 30,
(in thousands of Canadian dollars, except for per share amounts)		2014	2013
Sales		758,325	680,727
Gross margin		67,450	55,146
Distribution expense		10,338	8,857
Selling and administration expense		29,088	26,457
Finance expense		3,310	3,847
Subordinated debt interest expense		8,178	8,178
Other expense (income)		183	(468)
Earnings before income taxes		16,353	8,275
Income tax expense		5,115	2,788
Net earnings		11,238	5,487
Net earnings per share^(1)		0.35	0.17
EBITDA^(2)		29,850	22,323

The following is the reconciliation of net earnings to EBITDA:

		September 30,
(in thousands of Canadian dollars)		2014	2013
Net earnings		11,238	5,487
Income tax expense		5,115	2,788
Finance and subordinated debt interest expense		11,488	12,025
Amortization		2,009	2,023
EBITDA		29,850	22,323
Notes: (1) Earnings per share is calculated using the weighted average number of shares. (2) Reference is made above to EBITDA, which represents earnings before interest, taxes, and amortization. As there is no generally accepted method of calculating EBITDA, the measure as calculated by Taiga might not be comparable to similarly titled measures reported by other issuers. EBITDA is presented as management believes it is a useful indicator of a company's ability to meet debt service and capital expenditure requirements and because management interprets trends in EBITDA as an indicator of relative operating performance. EBITDA should not be considered by an investor as an alternative to net income or cash flows as determined in accordance with IFRS.

The foregoing selected financial information is qualified in its entirety by and should be read in conjunction with, our unaudited condensed interim consolidated financial statements for the three and six months ended September 30, 2014 and accompanying notes and management's discussion and analysis which will be available shortly on SEDAR at www.sedar.com.

SOURCE: Taiga Building Products Ltd.

regarding Taiga, please contact: Mark Schneidereit-Hsu, CFO and VP, Finance & Administration, Tel: [phone], Email: [email protected]