Nutraceutical International posts 5% sales increase

"Our fiscal 2013 second quarter net sales growth of $2.7 million, or 5%, came from branded domestic and international sales as well as fiscal 2012 acquisitions.  The second fiscal quarter is historically our strongest quarter although January and February were stronger comparatively than March.  We continue to be optimistic about our larger health and natural food store customers and the industry in general,”​ said Bill Gay, CEO of Nutraceutical.

 "Over the coming months, we will continue to pursue our long-term strategy of doing small to medium accretive acquisitions to sustain growth in a mature but healthy market. Our most recent efforts have been focused on consolidating, integrating and rationalizing the businesses we have acquired over the last several years,”​ he said.

Gay said Nutraceutical was continuing a program of enhancing operating efficiencies to offset less controllable costs relating to raw materials, new regulations or labor costs.

Nutraceutical, which has its headquarters in Park City, UT, has been known to keep a strict eye on controlling labor costs where possible, so much so that the National Labor Relations Board ruled that the company improperly closed a store and fired all of the workers because they had tried to form a labor union.

Report details​

The nuts and bolts of the earnings report were as follows:

Net sales for the fiscal 2013 second quarter were $56.6 million compared to $53.9 million for the same quarter of fiscal 2012.  For the second quarter of fiscal 2013, net income was $5.5 million, or $0.57 diluted earnings per share, compared to net income of $4.8 million, or $0.49 diluted earnings per share, for the same quarter of fiscal 2012. 

Net sales for the six months ended March 31, 2013 were $106.3 million compared to $100.5 million for the same period of fiscal 2012.  For the six months ended March 31, 2013, net income was $9.0 million, or $0.92 diluted earnings per share, compared to net income of $8.2 million, or $0.82 diluted earnings per share, for the same period of fiscal 2012. 

Nutraceutical International is an integrated manufacturer, marketer, distributor and retailer of branded nutritional supplements and other natural products sold primarily to and through domestic health and natural food stores.  In global markets the company distributes branded nutritional supplements and other natural products to and through health and natural product distributors and retailers.  The corporation’s core business strategy is to acquire, integrate and operate businesses in the natural products industry that manufacture, market and distribute branded nutritional supplements.

Among Nutraceutical International’s brands Solaray, KAL, Nature's Life, LifeTime, Natural Balance, bioAllers, Herbs for Kids, NaturalCare, Health from the Sun, Life-flo, Organix South, Pioneer and Monarch Nutraceuticals. 

The company also owns neighborhood natural food markets, which operate under the trade names The Real Food Company, Thom's Natural Foods and Cornucopia Community Market, and owns health food stores which operate under the trade names Fresh Vitamins, Granola's, Nature's Discount and Warehouse Vitamins.