IEC posts loss in second quarter

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IEC Electronics Corp. last week reported a nearly 3 percent increase in sales in the second quarter, but a loss in the bottom line.

For the quarter ended April 2, the Wayne County manufacturer reported revenues of $45.4 million, a 2.7 percent increase from $44.2 million in the second quarter last year. The company reported a net loss of $300,000 in the second quarter, or 3 cents per basic and diluted share. That compares with net income of $1.5 million, or 15 cents per share, in the year-ago quarter.

For the first six months of fiscal 2021, the company reported revenues of $92.8 million, an increase of 4.4 percent, compared with revenues of $88.9 million for the first six months of fiscal 2020. Operating profit was $2.0 million for the first six months of fiscal 2021, compared with $4.2 million for the same period in the prior year. Due primarily to the investments in both IEC’s new headquarters facility and incremental manufacturing equipment, operating profit for the first six months of fiscal 2021 included $1 million of additional depreciation expense.

The company reported net income of $1.2 million, or 11 cents per basic and diluted share for the first six months of fiscal 2021, compared with net income of $2.7 million, or 26 cents per basic and 25 cents per diluted share in the first six months of fiscal 2020.

“Second fiscal quarter results came in below expectations due to delays in ramping two high-value programs. We believe we have built an infrastructure to support the conversion of much higher revenue levels that have now shifted into the second half of the fiscal year. These complex programs, which are anticipated to provide considerable long-term revenue opportunity for IEC, experienced unusual technical challenges and supply chain delays that slowed the ramp to steady production, impacting revenue and profitability for the quarter,” said IEC President and CEO Jeffrey Schlarbaum in a statement.

The company views this as a timing issue, Schlarbaum said, as demand for IEC’s technical and complex manufacturing capabilities remains strong.

“As we have often discussed, we are a manufacturing partner for high complexity, life-saving and mission-critical industries, where there is no compromise for exact technical precision and product quality,” Schlarbaum added. “We are working closely with our customers to manage through the ramp-up challenges experienced in the second quarter and believe our partnerships have been strengthened by IEC’s technical capability, matched with a remediation know-how for complex issues like the ones encountered in the fiscal second quarter.”

On April 2, IEC reported current assets of $103 million, up from $92.6 million six months ago. The company reported cash of $391,000, compared with no reportable cash in the year-ago quarter.

“With our visibility today, we remain confident and believe we are well-positioned to drive double-digit organic growth for the balance of fiscal 2021,” Schlarbaum said. “As a 100 percent U.S.-based manufacturer with a full portfolio of vertically integrated production services, IEC is an attractive partner for companies across several regulated industries who are looking for the highest levels of intellectual property protection and supply chain management. We are focused on growing our leadership position and we are energized by the opportunities we’re seeing in the marketplace to add new customers and programs.”

Shares of company stock (Nasdaq: IEC) have ranged from $7.35 to $17.98 in the last 52 weeks and opened Monday at $11.57.

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