Financial reports: PC Connection, NBTY

PC Connections Earnings Down 75% for 4Q, 77% for Year

Weak demand from businesses and consumers alike led to a disappointing fourth quarter and year for computer cataloger PC Connection (NASDAQ: PCCC). Net sales for the three months ended Dec. 31 were $273.1 million, down 21% from $345.1 million for the fourth quarter of 2000. Net income tumbled 75%, to $1.4 million from $5.5 million last year.

For the year ended Dec. 31, PC Connection reported net sales of $1.18 billion, a 19% decrease from $1.45 billion the previous year. Net income fell 77%, to $7.2 million from $31.5 million. Excluding the effects of restructuring costs and other special charges of $2.2 million (pre-tax), net income was $8.5 million. The Merrimack, NH-based company says that it expects continued weakness throughout the first half of fiscal 2002.

Direct Sales at NBTY Up 17% Bohemia, NY-based NBTY (Nasdaq: NBTY), a manufacturer/marketer of nutritional supplements, had net sales of $215 million for its fiscal first quarter ended Dec. 31, up 29% from $167 million for the comparable period of 2000. Net income for the quarter was $11 million, a huge improvement from the previous year’s $639,000. Catalog and Internet sales increased 17%, to $32 million from $27 million.