Posted April 30, 2010
Newell Rubbermaid's sales up 8.5 percent
Newell Rubbermaid reported net sales increased 8.5 percent to $1.3 billion in the first quarter, compared to $1.2 billion in the prior year.
"We are pleased to report a return to net sales growth across all our geographic regions, a significant inflection point from the sales trends of the last four quarters," said Mark
Ketchum, president and CEO. "Looking forward, we are encouraged by early signs of improvement in the global economy and increased confidence on the part of our retail and industrial customers."
Core sales improved 7.2 percent. The company estimates that 2 to 3 percent of the core sales increase reflects increased consumer demand while the remainder is attributable to selective customer inventory restocking and a timing shift in customer buying patterns from the second quarter to the first quarter in advance of an April SAP implementation at the Rubbermaid Consumer and Rubbermaid Commercial Products business units.
Net income was $58.4 million, or 19 cents per diluted share, compared to $33.7 million, or 12 cents per diluted share, in the first quarter 2009.
