Hammond Power Solutions Reports First Quarter 2025 Financial Results

Core Insights - Hammond Power Solutions Inc. reported a 5.6% increase in same-quarter sales, reaching $201 million, demonstrating business resilience amid trade-tariff uncertainties [3][6] - The company experienced a 17.7% increase in backlog compared to Q4 2024, driven by strong demand in certain markets, particularly data center activities [3][4] - Gross margin for Q1 2025 was 31.5%, slightly down from 31.7% in Q1 2024, attributed to increased material and labor costs [5][6] Sales Performance - Sales in the U.S. and Mexico increased by 7.8% year-over-year to $140.9 million, while Canadian sales rose by 6.9% to $51.6 million [3] - Sales in India decreased by 23.9% to $8.9 million, reflecting challenges in that market [3] - Private label sales saw significant growth, particularly in data center applications [3] Financial Metrics - Adjusted EBITDA for Q1 2025 was $30.9 million, representing 15.4% of sales, while net earnings reached $26.2 million, a substantial increase from $8 million in Q1 2024 [6][10] - Basic earnings per share were $2.20, up from $0.67 in the same quarter last year [11] - Total selling and distribution expenses increased to $22.3 million, or 11.1% of sales, reflecting higher variable freight and commission expenses [7] Backlog and Future Outlook - The backlog increased by 18.9% compared to Q1 2024, indicating strong future demand driven by large projects [4] - The company anticipates a favorable shift towards more custom product shipments in the latter half of the year due to the new factory coming online faster than planned [3] Cost Management - General and administrative expenses significantly decreased to $3.7 million, or 1.9% of sales, primarily due to the recovery of share-based compensation costs [8] - The company announced a price increase in February 2025 to offset rising material and labor costs, effective for catalogue-based products starting April 2025 [5]