Financial Reports: OfficeMax, Excelligence

OfficeMax Contract Operating Income Down
The contract division of Itasca, IL-based Office Max (NYSE: OMX), which includes the catalog/Internet business, reported year-over-year declines in fourth-quarter and annual operating income despite strong sales growth.

Sales for OfficeMax Contract were $1.1 billion in the fourth quarter of 2004, an increase of 16%. Sales for the full year of 2004 were $4.4 billion, an increase of 17% from 2003. But the division’s fourth-quarter operating income fell 42%, to $19.8 million from $33.9 million for the fourth quarter of 2004. For full-year 2004, OfficeMax Contract reported operating income of $107.0 million, compared with $118.6 million in 2003 before a special item.

Excelligence Sales Up 10%
Monterey, CA-based toys and learning products marketer Excelligence Learning Corp. (Nasdaq:LRNS) posted a 74% decline in annual net income, despite a 10% increase in revenue.

For the year ended Dec. 31, the parent company of Discount School Supply, Early Childhood Manufacturers’ Direct, and SmarterKids.com netted $2.0 million on $121.3 million in sales. For 2003 it had reported net income of $7.8 million on revenue of $109.9 million. Financial results for 2003 had benefited from two nonrecurring tax adjustments, however.