Herman Miller announced results for its third quarter ended February 28, 2015. Net sales totaled $516.4 million, an increase of 13.3% from the same quarter last fiscal year.
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New orders in the third quarter of $500.5 million were 7.9% above the prior year level.
On an organic basis, which adjusts for acquisitions, divestitures, and foreign currency translation, sales in the third quarter increased 4.3% from the same quarter last fiscal year.
Herman Miller reported net earnings of $0.35 per share on a diluted basis in the third quarter. This compares to diluted earnings per share of $0.33 in the same quarter last fiscal year.
Excluding restructuring expenses recognized in the current period, adjusted diluted earnings per share in the third quarter totaled $0.37, an amount equaling the high end of the company's earnings guidance for the quarter. This compares to adjusted diluted earnings of $0.34 per share in the third quarter of fiscal 2014.
Sales for the quarter within Herman Miller's North American reportable segment were $296.0 million, an increase of 0.7% from the same quarter last fiscal year. On an organic basis, excluding the negative impact of changes in foreign currency translation, segment sales increased 2.5% on a year-over-year basis.
New orders in the third quarter totaled $282.3 million, a decrease of 3.2% from the year ago period. On an organic basis, segment orders in the third quarter were 1.2% lower than last year.
Net sales within the ELA segment totaled $97.3 million in the third quarter of fiscal 2015. This represents a 0.6% decrease from the same quarter of last fiscal year. New orders in this segment totaled $100.0 million in the third quarter, representing a year-over-year decrease of 0.8%. The continuing strengthening of the U.S. dollar posed a significant headwind to segment growth this quarter.
On an organic basis, excluding the negative impact of changes in foreign currency translation, segment sales increased 5.5% and orders increased 4.8% from the third quarter of last year, reflecting growth from the Asia-Pacific and EMEA regions offset by economic pressures in Latin America.
Net sales in the third quarter within Herman Miller's Specialty segment totaled $50.5 million. This represents a 6.3% increase over sales in the same quarter last year. New orders in the quarter of $53.2 million increased 7.5% from the year ago period. Geiger and The Herman Miller Collection were the major contributors to this growth in the quarter.
The Consumer segment benefited this quarter from a combination of acquired and organic growth relative to the prior year period. Net sales in the quarter of $72.6 million were up $56 million from last year.
The majority of this year-over-year increase relates to the acquisition of DWR, which added sales of $52.5 million, net of eliminations. Orders in the third quarter of $65 million were up by $43.0 million from the prior year.
Herman Miller's consolidated gross margin in the third quarter totaled 36.9% compared to 35.7% reported in the same quarter of last fiscal year. This year-over-year improvement is primarily attributed to favorable product and channel mix, including the addition of DWR, operational improvements, and pricing realization, which more than offset the unfavorable currency translation impact from a stronger U.S. dollar. ■