First quarter earnings for were up for High Liner Foods, Lunenberg, Nova Scotia, Canada, even though sales were down due to weak restaurant sales.
The frozen seafood company, which keeps its books in U.S. dollars, said May 7 it earned $5.3 million or 34 cents per share for the quarter ended March 30 compared with a profit of $1.7 million or 11 cents per share a year ago. Sales were $275.2 million, down from $287.6 million.
Excluding one-time items, the company said it earned an adjusted profit of $9.8 million or 63 cents per share, down from $14 million or 91 cents per share a year ago. A year ago when it had been hit by costs related to its acquisition of Icelandic USA. High Liner is one of North America's leading producers of frozen seafood including the High Liner, Fisher Boy, Mirabel and Sea Cuisine brands.
"It was a challenging quarter, particularly in the U.S., as we faced a number of issues specific to the quarter and a very strong first quarter last year as the comparable period," said President and Chief Executive Henry Demone. "Prices for commodity products in the quarter declined more rapidly than the applicable costs for such products, resulting in reduced sales as well as reduced margins. In the U.S., restaurant sales were soft during the quarter as macro-economic considerations, including higher payroll taxes, impacted consumers and reduced restaurant traffic."
