Charles E Bunch, Chairman and CEO, PPG.
Earnings per share of $ 1.40; quarterly sales top $ 3.5 billion, up 13 per cent
PITTSBURGH, US: PPG Industries reported net income for the quarter increased to $ 228 million or $ 1.40 per diluted share. First quarter 2010 sales were $ 3.1 billion and reported net income was $ 30 million or 18 cents per diluted share. The company said its sales for the first quarter 2011 was $ 3.5 billion, an increase of 13 per cent versus the prior year’s first quarter. The company posted double-digit percentage sales increases in each major region and all reporting segments achieved higher sales volumes and pricing.
First quarter 2010 adjusted net income was $ 115 million or 69 cents per diluted share. First quarter 2010 net income included an aftertax charge of $ 85 million or 51 cents per diluted share. “We’ve continued our strong earnings momentum and have posted our third consecutive quarterly record. Each of our reporting segments delivered higher year-over-year earnings driven by continued volume growth from a broadening global industrial recovery, including strengthening conditions in Europe,” said Charles E Bunch, Chairman and CEO, PPG.
“Our coatings segments have continued to deliver strong results. In addition to demand improvements, higher pricing in each of our coatings businesses and continued aggressive cost management have buffered the impact of persistent raw material cost increases,” he said. Operating margins in performance coatings, industrial coatings and architectural coatings – Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) segments matched those of the previous year and total coatings segment earnings grew by nearly 12 per cent versus the prior year results, he added.
Bunch stated that construction activity remained low in developed regions and that there were no signs of imminent improvement. Despite this market weakness, the company achieved modest year-over-year volume gains in these markets.
“We remain optimistic and expect similar economic trends in the second quarter, which is seasonally our strongest sales quarter of the year. We anticipate further pricing gains in every segment as we continue to confront raw material cost inflation. Finally, we continue to work on initiatives to deploy our cash to grow earnings. We will continue to apply our disciplined approach toward evaluating acquisitions and we expect to announce several small - to medium-sized bolt-on acquisitions over the next six to nine months,” said Bunch.
(C) WOC News