Financial reports: MSC, Sportsman’s Guide, RedEnvelope

Quarterly Sales, Earnings Drop at MSC

Citing economic conditions and softness in the manufacturing sector, maintenance, repair, and operations supplies cataloger MSC Industrial Direct Co. (NYSE: MSM) posted decline on both sides of its corporate ledger. For the three months ended Dec. 1, net sales were $188.9 million, down 15% from $221.9 million for the comparable quarter of 2000. Net income for the company’s fiscal first quarter decreased 40%, to $8.1 million from $13.5 million the previous first quarter.

The Melville, NY-based cataloger isn’t expecting an uptick in business anytime soon. “Since Dec. 1, order flows have remained inconsistent, and therefore, at this point, no discernible sales trends have emerged for the second quarter,” chairman/CEO Mitchell Jacobsen said in a statement. “Sales levels through the first six weeks of the second quarter are 16% lower than [during] the comparable period last year. Assuming this trend continues, we anticipate revenue and earnings per share for the second quarter to be in line with our first quarter financial performance.”

Sportsman’s Guide Boosts Earnings, Sales Targets Outdoor gear cataloger Sportsman’s Guide (NasdaqSC: SGDE) again boosted its fourth-quarter guidance, as its tax rate was reduced due to the reversal of a previously established deferred tax asset reserve.

South St. Paul, MN-based Sportsman’s Guide said it now anticipates net income for its fiscal fourth quarter of $3.0 million-$3.2 million, compared with a loss of nearly $700,000 for the fourth quarter of fiscal 2000. The company also raised its fourth-quarter sales estimates to $61.0 million-$63.0 million. On Dec. 27 it had estimated its fourth-quarter sales at $60.0 million-$62 million. The cataloger expects full-year earnings of $2.5 million-$2.7 million, an appreciable turnaround from fiscal 2000’s net loss of $3.2 million.

RedEnvelope Posts First Profitable Quarter San Francisco-based gifts marketer RedEnvelope, which launched in fall 1999, has reached profitability for the quarter ended Dec. 31. Although RedEnvelope did not publish net income specifics (nor, as a privately held company, is it required to), it did issue a release stating that strong holiday sales, gross merchandising margins of more than 50%, and improved marketing efficiencies contributed to the bottom line. The company expects revenue for fiscal year 2002, which ends March 31, to reach $50 million, up 67% from last year.