Actuant Corp. (NYSE: ATU), Milwaukee, WI, reported sales for the second quarter ended Feb. 28, 2013, of $370 million, down 2 percent from the same period a year ago. Core sales declined 6 percent. Profit fell 11.6 percent to $28.4 million.
For the first six months, sales were $748 million, down 3 percent from the prior year period. Core sales declined 7 percent. Profit was down 6.6 percent to $64.8 million.
“During the normally seasonally weak quarter, we experienced generally subdued activity in the global industrial markets reflecting both cautious spending and continued destocking initiatives by OEM customers," CEO Robert C. Arzbaecher said. "While economic conditions remain weak in most end markets and regions, we have kept our organization agile and are anticipating both seasonal and core growth in the second half of the fiscal year."
Second-quarter sales for the industrial segment increased slightly to $99 million. Core sales increased 1 percent, driven by higher global integrated solutions activity. North America and the AsiaPac region saw the strongest growth, with year-over-year core sales declines in Europe and China. For the six-month period, segment sales increased slightly to $200.1 million.
Energy segment sales grew 2.4 percent to $80.8 million in the second quarter. Core sales declined 1 percent from the prior year levels. For the six-month period, segment sales grew 7.7 percent to $171.6 million.
Electrical segment sales fell 9.3 percent in the second quarter to $69.9 million. For the six-month period, sales fell 12.9 percent.
Second-quarter sales for the engineered solutions segment declined 2.3 percent to $120.7 million. Core sales declined 12 percent. Sales continued to be impacted by OEM destocking in the heavy-duty truck, off-highway equipment and auto markets. For the six-month period, sales were down 6.4 percent year over year.
