A slight increase in sales in its manufacturing segment offset a decline in its publishing group resulting in total revenue for the fiscal year ended September 29 inching up to $261.3 million from $259.4 million in fiscal 2011 at Courier Corp. Net income jumped to $9.2 million from $134,000. Earnings in both years were impacted by one-time charges and excluding extraordinary items net income in fiscal 2012 would have been $10.9 million compared to $10.7 million in fiscal 2011.
For the full year, book manufacturing sales rose 1%, to $233.0 million. In the year, sales to the education market were down 3% to $98 million, due to shorter run lengths in certain college textbooks and continued weakness in el-hi sales. Sales to the religious market were up 2% to $68 million for the full year led by a 5% increase in sales to its biggest customer. Sales to the specialty trade market increased 11%, to $60 million, reflecting increased four-color offset sales as well as growing demand for digital. Courier said revenue rose” sharply” at Courier Digital Solutions, reflecting growth in demand for customized versions of college textbooks as well as increased sales of trade books. With its current digital facilities running close to capacity, Courier said it plans to add both a new HP digital cover press in Massachusetts and a complete new digital production facility to complement its four-color offset plant in Kendallville, IN.
In the publishing segment, sales fell 6%, to $38.4 million, with sales up modestly at Dover but down at REA and Creative Homeowner. Excluding restructuring costs in both years, the segment’s operating loss for fiscal 2012 was $3.7 million, compared to a loss of $4.1 million in fiscal 2011. The reduction in the loss was attributable to the effects of cost-reduction measures taken throughout the year. Higher sales of digital and print content through online retailers couldn’t completely offset the loss of sales to Borders, especially at REA, Courier reported. The company added that having digitized “thousands” of titles, it began to see payback in the fourth quarter.
For fiscal 2013, Courier said it expects sales of between $269 million and $283 million, an increase of between 3% and 8%, with earnings per diluted share of between $.75 and $1.05, which compares with fiscal 2012 earnings of $.91 per diluted share. Courier also projected that capital expenditures, which were $10 million in fiscal 2012, will increase to between $17 million and $19 million in fiscal 2013, with approximately $13 million dedicated to expanding its digital capabilities
