solid results Sales, profits rise at ATS Automation Tooling Systems
CAMBRIDGE – ATS Automation Tooling Systems boosted its fourth-quarter profits to $11.3 million as sales climbed 31 per cent, largely because of the recent acquisition of German company IWK.
The Cambridge-based manufacturer of automated production systems earned profits of $8.3 million in the fourth quarter a year ago.
Sales in the fourth quarter ended March 31 were $200.7 million, up from $153.2 million in the same period a year ago.
IWK, a manufacturer of tube filling and cartoning machinery that was acquired last September, contributed $29.6 million in sales in the quarter, ATS said. Without that contribution, sales increased 12 per cent in the period.
"Our fourth quarter operating performance was strong," chief executive officer Anthony Caputo said Thursday in a news release. "Our business is growing, both organically and through acquisition, our operating margins remained strong and we ended the fiscal year with record order backlog."
The fourth quarter results included a $1-million restructuring charge, which included costs associated with the closing of a manufacturing plant in Singapore.
Excluding results from Ontario Solar, a manufacturer of ground-mounted solar power systems that has been wound down, ATS earned profits of $11.7 million in the fourth quarter.
ATS said revenue from customers in the consumer products and electronics sectors climbed 216 per cent in the fourth quarter compared to a year earlier, while revenue from the energy sector increased 94 per cent.
The company said it booked $197 million in orders in the fourth quarter, up 16 per cent from the same period a year ago. IWK contributed $26 million in order bookings.
ATS said it finished the quarter with a record order backlog of $474 million, up from $398 million a year ago.