Electrical Distributors 3Q Sales: Anixter, Wesco

Anixter
Anixter International Inc., Glenview, IL, distributor of communication products, electrical and electronic wire & cable and a distributor of fasteners and other small parts, reported sales of $1.52 billion in the third quarter 2007, which includes $31.7 million from acquisitions in the past 12 months. Sales were up 14%.
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Profit fell 15% to $64.8 million.
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For the nine-month period ended Sept. 28, 2007, sales of $4.36 billion produced profit of $183 million. Included in the 2007 nine-month results were sales of $105 million from acquisitions in the past year.
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Robert Grubbs, President and CEO, said: The 14% sales growth generated in the current quarter was particularly encouraging in light of the significant economic uncertainty that existed during the quarter, especially relating to the difficult credit environment in the U.S., our largest market.
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"Our growth reflects the fact that we continued to see strong growth in most major geographies and end markets that we serve on a global basis.
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"& hellip; In the most recent quarter, we again experienced good levels of larger project business, together with solid day-to-day trends throughout all parts of the business. At the same time, we have continued to experience strong growth in the security and OEM markets."
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Grubbs said copper prices had no "meaningful impact" on organic growth in the most recent quarter as year-on-year price fluctuations had stabilized. Market-based copper prices averaged approximately $3.48 per pound during the quarter compared to $3.54 per pound in the year ago third quarter.
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North America saw year-over-year sales growth of 8% to $1.07 billion in the third quarter. In Europe, sales climbed by $77.5 million, or 32%; $21 million was due to exchange rate differences and $31.7 million to acquisitions. Organic growth was 10%. Anixter says its efforts to expand in the electrical wire and cable market in Europe resulted in sales of $55.9 million in the quarter as compared with $42.3 million in the year-ago quarter. Organic growth was 23% in this area.
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Latin America and Asia Pacific saw a 38% increase and 65% increase, respectively.
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Wesco
WESCO International Inc., Pittsburgh, PA, supplier of electrical MRO products, construction materials, and integrated supply services, reported sales of $1.5 billion in third quarter 2007, an increase of 15.1%. That includes $183 million in recent acquisitions.
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Profit was $70 million in the quarter.

Year-to-date, sales for the nine months ended Sept. 30, 2007, were $4.5 billion, up 14.4%. Sales from recent acquisitions were $524 million.