-- Richelieu Hardware (RCH.TO), down 2.2% on last look, on Thursday said its fiscal first-quarter earnings and sales both rose, but fell short of expectations.
The specialty hardware company said net earnings attributable to shareholders increased 2.7% to $15.1 million, or $0.26 per share, in the quarter ended Feb.28, from $13.9 million, or $0.25, in the prior-year period. Analysts polled by FactSet had expected $0.30 per share.
Sales rose 5.0% to $463.6 million, missing the $471.6-million consensus forecast. Richelieu reported a 3.4% increase in sales in Canada, to $249.8 million. U.S. sales jumped 11.3% to US$155.6 million.
The company will pay a regular quarterly dividend of $0.157 per share on May 7 to shareholders of record on April 23.
"At the beginning of the quarter, as previously announced, we completed the acquisition of three distribution centres from McKillican American, following a series of nine acquisitions in 2025. Located in Oregon and Washington State, this acquisition expands and diversifies our offering and customer base in regions where we were already present, while also allowing us to integrate new talent into the organization. It also represents the 100th acquisition in Richelieu's history," said chief executive Richard Lord.
Richelieu has also signed two agreements in principle for acquisitions in Canada, Lord added. "The fragmented market in which we operate continues to present acquisition opportunities that we will pursue when they meet our criteria."
Richelieu shares were last seen down $0.89 to $39.62 on the Toronto Stock exchange.
Price: $39.66, Change: $-0.85, Percent Change: -2.10%