Central Garden announces financial results

The Central Garden & Pet Company, a marketer and producer of branded products for the lawn and garden and pet supplies, announced the financial results for its fiscal third quarter. The company reported third-quarter net sales of $ 533.8 mio, an increase of 10 per cent from the same period a year ago. Third-quarter operating income was $ 49.0 mio, compared to operating income of $ 36.6 mio in the third quarter of 2011, a 34 per cent increase.The increase in operating income reflected higher sales and a favourable product mix, which resulted in both higher gross margins and higher operating margins. Net interest expense was $ 10.7 mio compared to $ 9.8 mio in the year-ago period. Net income totaled $ 22.7 mio, or $ 0.47 per fully diluted share, compared with net income of $ 17.1 mio, or $ 0.31 per fully diluted share, in the third quarter of 2011. Net sales for the pet segment increased 19 per cent, or $ 44.0 mio, from the same period a year ago to $ 271.3 mio, on strength across many of its categories, especially flea and tick. The pet segment's branded product sales were $ 228.9 mio and sales of other manufacturers' products were $ 42.4 mio. The pet segment's gross and operating margins rose from a year ago, due primarily to a favourable change in the mix of sales including higher flea & tick sales and lower third-party product sales. The pet segment's operating income was $ 40.5 mio compared to operating income of $ 27.2 mio in the prior-year period, an increase of $ 13.3 mio or 49 per cent.