Acquisitions Keep Nutraceutical Corp. Moving Upward

SALT LAKE CITY—Nutraceutical Corp. (NASDAQ:NUTR) (www.nutraceutical.com) reported slightly increased sales for its second quarter, reflecting contributions from four acquisitions completed in the first half of the current fiscal year. Revenues inched up to $42.1 million from $41.0 million sold a year ago, but earnings remained relatively flat at $4.2 million or $0.37 per share—earnings from the same quarter last year were $4.3 million or $0.37 per share, excluding $0.7 million gained from the sale of a building.

Bill Gay, chairman and chief executive officer (CEO), said the company has dedicated significant resources to the integration of the recently acquired businesses and is pleased with the progress to date. “We believe these acquisitions complement our ongoing effort to respond to consumer preferences within the healthy foods channel and strengthen our portfolio of brands,” he said. “We expect that the potential long-term sales and expense synergies of these acquired brands will take time to realize as our integration efforts continue.”

Gay noted during the second quarter, net sales of some SKUs of branded products to certain customers were less than expected, partially due to the relatively flat industry growth rates and competitive climate for supplements in health and natural food stores. “In addition, we believe that some proposed customer consolidation in the healthy foods channel has had some impact on our business during this fiscal year,” he added. “In the long run, however, we believe this customer consolidation will have a positive impact for the industry and our business.”