Uni-Select Inc. Increases Its Profits on Heels of Joint Venture

Uni-Select has announced that it has increased net profits by 38% for the first quarter of 2002.
With the net profits increase of 38.0%, dollar profits rose to attain $3,097,000 or $0.17 per share compared to $2,244,000 or $0.13 per share in the same period the previous year.
Sales totaled $144,488,000, an increase of 4.5% compared to sales of $138,221,000 realized in the first quarter of 2001.
Automotive Group Canada increased its sales by 3.4% during the first quarter 2002 to reach $102,191,000. The group’s organic growth was reported at 3.0%, when adjusted to reflect the same number of days of sales as the 2001 first quarter.
All other growth is as a result of the joint venture created on February 1st, 2002 with Acklands-Grainger Inc. in the prairie provinces.
Automotive Group Canada’s operating margin decreased to 5.3% compared to 5.5% the preceding year because of the new joint venture’s lower margin on additional revenues. Automotive Group USA’s contribution to Uni-Select’s sales increased by 9.7% to attain $30,896,000 compared to $28,164,000 for the same quarter last year.
The group’s organic growth was reported at 4.9% based on an identical number of days when reported in Canadian currency. Organic growth measured in US currency was 0.3%. The acquisition of part of the assets of The Parts House, in March 2001, also contributed to an increase in revenues when compared to the corresponding quarter of 2001.
Uni-Select USA’S operating margin increased by over 45%, demonstrating both an increase of revenues and an improvement of the operating margin rate.
The Heavy Duty Group enjoyed sales of $11,401,000 for the first quarter of 2002, an improvement of 1.3% compared to sales of $11,258,000 for the same quarter last year.
This increase is organic and would have been 4.6% had it been computed using the same number of days as last year. The Group also reduced is operating loss by more than 82% during the first quarter, which historically is the weakest of the year.
On an annual basis, the Group should maintain and improve its operating profitability which was restored during the 2001 fiscal year.
“We look at our 2002 perspectives with optimism” said Jacques Landreville, president and chief executive officer. “In Canada, the market will benefit from the increase of new vehicles sold since 1997 which will enter the aftermarket soon.”
In the United States, we are starting to realize the impact of the integration work done during the past three years. As far as the Heavy Duty Group is concerned, it keeps on improving its performance and we can foresee more favorable market conditions in this sector.”