Profits up, quarterly sales flat for Milacron

Processing equipment manufacturer Milacron Holdings Corporation reported flat sales in the first quarter of 2016, but the company still made a profit after losing money in the first quarter a year ago.

“We are off to a solid start in 2016, as constant currency sales increased 1.7 per cent,” said Milacron CEO Tom Goeke. “Our results are a significant accomplishment in light of the uncertain economic conditions we encountered during the first quarter. The first quarter is seasonally our lowest sales…and we remain confident in our ability to drive full year sales growth, expand margins and create shareholder value.”

“Our balance sheet continues to strengthen, as free cash flow generation of US$16.5 million represents an increase of over US$30 million versus the prior year,” Milacron CFO Bruce Chalmers added. “The improvement in working capital and our disciplined approach to capital allocation led to the year over year increase.”

First quarter 2016 sales were US$277.3 million, down less than one per cent from US$279.2 million in the first quarter of 2015.

Milacron reported a net profit of $9.8 million in Q1 2016, compared to a loss of US$15.9 million in Q1 2015.

On a segment-by-segment basis, Milacron’s advanced plastic processing technologies division reported sales of US$156.1 million in Q1 2016, compared to US$154.0 million in the same period a year ago, which represents a sales increase of 3.4 per cent.

Its melt delivery & control systems segment reported Q1 2016 sales of US$93.0 million compared to sales of $96.8 million in the same period a year ago, a decrease of 1.3 per cent.

And Milacron’s fluid technologies segment reported sales of US$28.2 million in Q1 2016 compared to sales of US$28.4 million in the same period a year ago, an increase of 3.2 per cent over the prior year period.

Headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio, Milacron manufactures plastics processing machinery, melt delivery systems like hot runners and mold components, and metal-cutting fluids. The company has production sites in North America, Europe, India, and China.