Acquisition continues to fuel Nutraceutical International's growth

Nutraceutical International Corporation will continue to align itself with a growing list of dietary supplement manufacturers and ingredient suppliers in seeking out acquisition opportunities to grow the business, chairman and CEO Bill Gay said.

"In fiscal 2014, we will continue to focus on the acquisition of companies with complementary offerings to supplement our extensive portfolio of branded products.  Our key corporate customers have continued to expand their retail footprints throughout the US and we anticipate this will continue for the foreseeable future,” Gay said.

Steady growth continues

The company, based in Park City, UT, reported fourth quarter fiscal 2013 results recently. For the quarter that ended Sept. 30, net sales were $51.3 million compared to $50.3 million for the same quarter of fiscal 2012.  For the fourth quarter of fiscal 2013, net income was $4.1 million, or $0.42 diluted earnings per share, compared to net income of $4.2 million, or $0.42 diluted earnings per share, for the same quarter of fiscal 2012.  Net income for the fourth quarter of fiscal 2013 included non-cash intangible asset impairment charges of $0.1 million, net of tax, or $0.01 per diluted share, related to certain tradenames. 

For the full year, net sales were $208.4 million compared to $200.4 million for the same period of fiscal 2012.  For the fiscal year ended September 30, 2013, net income was $17.0 million, or $1.73 diluted earnings per share (including the intangible asset impairment charges), compared to net income of $15.8 million, or $1.59 diluted earnings per share, for the same period of fiscal 2012. Net income for the fiscal year ended September 30, 2012 included a non-cash intangible asset impairment charge of $0.6 million, net of tax, or $0.06 per diluted share, related to the consolidation of certain brands.

Operating cash flow for the fiscal year ended September 30, 2013 was $26.8 million compared to $27.2 million for the same period of fiscal 2012.  The operating cash flow for the fiscal year ended September 30, 2013 was primarily used to pay a special cash dividend to stockholders on December 28, 2012 of $9.8 million and to invest $8.3 million in purchases of property, plant and equipment, $3.4 million in acquisitions of natural product businesses, $3.1 million in purchases of common stock for treasury and to repay net borrowings of $1.5 million on the Company's revolving credit facility.

Key growth targets met

“Positive growth was achieved in three key financial measurements during fiscal 2013—net sales, net income and adjusted EBITDA.  Management is as excited about future growth opportunities today as we were when the business was founded 20 years ago.  The strategic nature, product offering and size of our business should allow us to remain a strong and competitive force in our marketplace," Gay said.

Nutraceutical International manufacturers a number of supplements under brand names such as Solaray, Nature’s Life, Natural Balance and Organix South. The company says it manufacturers more than 7,500 SKUs, about 1,000 of which are sold internationally. The company also owns and operates health food stores which Fresh Vitamins, Granola's, Nature's Discount and Warehouse Vitamins.