IEC Electronics Corp (NYSEAMERICAN:IEC), an electronic manufacturing services company, reported fiscal fourth quarter results before the bell Friday, marking five consecutive quarters of revenue growth.
IEC saw revenue of $43.9 million for the three months ended September 30, up 28% from $34.2 million a year earlier and ahead of Street estimates of $40.4 million. The fiscal fourth quarter was the second in a row with revenue greater than $40 million.
Shares of IEC were riding 6.6% higher at $7.60,
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“Our fourth quarter performance built on the positive momentum we established throughout fiscal 2019, providing a strong close to our fiscal year," CEO Jeffrey Schlarbaum said in a statement. “We believe our continued investments in our highly skilled workforce, manufacturing processes, and supply chain strategies, have enhanced our ability to convert our backlog in a more efficient manner, resulting in industry leading margin performance and year over year improvements.”
The Newark, New York-based company reported net income of $1.9 million, or $0.17 per diluted share, down year over year from $9.1 million, or $0.87 per share, but strong enough to beat analyst estimates of $0.13 per share. IEC also noted that the fiscal fourth quarter of 2018 included a one-time tax benefit of $7.8 million, or $0.76 per share.
Looking ahead, Schlarbaum is optimistic about fiscal 2020.
“As we look to our upcoming year, our pipeline remains strong with our fiscal 2019 year-end backlog at $212 million, which represents a 59% increase from fiscal 2018,” Schlarbaum said. “The backlog growth is a direct result of our focused strategy of expanding our relationships with existing customers in addition to on-boarding new strategic customers who value our unique service model.”
Schlarbaum concluded, “We’re energized by our strong performance in fiscal 2019 and look forward to driving continued success in 2020. We remain focused on our mission to minimize supply chain risk for our customers and to provide the expertise required for the life-saving and mission critical products we support. With the people, technology and customer relationships we have in place today, we believe we are well positioned to grow our leadership position and capture additional market share.”
Founded in 1966, IEC, together with its subsidiaries, provides electronic manufacturing services to the defense, medical, industrial, and aerospace sectors in the US.
—Updated to include stock movement—
Contact Andrew Kessel at [email protected]
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