Standex sales up, but margins shrinking

Standex International Corp. is selling more but at a smaller margin during its last quarter and fiscal year, according to an earnings report released Wednesday.Sales were up in the small Salem-based conglomerate by 15 percent to $174.6 million in the last quarter of fiscal 2011 (ending June 30), but the company posted a net income of $10.3 million (81 cents a diluted share) — only $2 million more than the same quarter in fiscal 2010. The company thus ended fiscal 2011 with $634 million in sales, resulting in a net income of $35 million ($2.77 a diluted share). Compare that to fiscal 2010, when it had $578 million in sales, resulting in $29 million in profits.The company’s largest segment was its food service equipment group, which increased its sales 9.8 percent to $997 million for the quarter. However, operating income was $10 million, an $8.2 million decrease. Margins were down, thanks to commodity inflation, increased sales through dealer-buying groups and a product mix shifted from walk-in to reach-in refrigeration products, the company said.The company ended the year with $14.4 million in cash and equivalents, less than half the $33.6 million it had last year. The reason assets are up by nearly $30 million to $475 million? The company’s estimation of its goodwill rose by $15 million, and its intangible assets went up $10 million. The company also had $14 million more laying around in inventory and expected about $10 million more in receivables. Meanwhile, liabilities were up partly because the company had more bills to pay: $72.8 million as opposed to $58.5 million. — BOB SANDERS/NEW HAMPSHIRE BUSINESS REVIEW