Interface, Inc. (Nasdaq: TILE), a worldwide commercial flooring company and global leader in sustainability, today announced results for the third quarter ended October 3, 2021.
Quarterly Highlights:
- Q3 2021 orders increased 24% year over year compared to Q3 2020.
- Net sales totaled $313 million, up 12% year over year compared to Q3 2020.
- Q3 2021 GAAP earnings per share of $0.19; Q3 2021 adjusted earnings per share of $0.29.
- Debt paydown continues to be strong with $30 million of debt repaid in the third quarter.
- European carpet tile production no longer using petroleum-based bitumen backing.
“We delivered solid results this quarter, growing sales 12% year over year, while generating $29 million of cash from operating activities and paying down debt to reach pre-pandemic leverage. Order momentum continued, increasing 24% year over year, reflecting a 34% increase in the Americas region and a 12% increase in our EAAA region. Demand for our carbon neutral and carbon negative products continues to build, and we are proud to announce that we have transitioned our European carpet tile backing entirely to CQuest™Bio, removing petroleum-based bitumen in favor of bio-based materials and recycled fillers,” said Dan Hendrix, Chairman and CEO of Interface. “We continue to take great strides on our Climate Take Back™ journey. Last month, we also announced that we are the first global flooring company to receive third-party validation of our 2030 greenhouse gas (GHG) reduction targets as science-based by the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi). These now validated science-based targets (SBT) commit Interface to further reduce our Scopes 1, 2 and 3 emissions in alignment with our goal of becoming a carbon negative company by 2040.”
“We expect a strong end to the year, as we ended Q3 with backlog up 33% year over year and 8% sequentially. Gross margins will continue to be hampered due to ongoing industry-wide supply chain challenges, but those impacts will be partially offset with pass throughs of price increases and freight surcharges,” added Bruce Hausmann, CFO of Interface.
Third Quarter 2021 Financial Summary
Sales: Third quarter net sales were $312.7 million, up 12% versus $278.6 million in the prior year period. The strong sales activity resulted from a release of pent-up demand and an ensuing commercial market recovery.
Gross profit margin was 34.0% in the third quarter, a decrease of 266 basis points from the prior year period. Adjusted gross profit margin was 34.5%, a decrease of 271 basis points from adjusted gross margin for the prior year period due to higher labor, freight and raw material costs.
Third quarter SG&A expenses were $77.7 million, or 24.9% of net sales, compared to $88.2 million, or 31.6% of net sales in third quarter last year. Adjusted SG&A expenses were $77.5 million, or 24.8% of net sales in third quarter 2021, compared to $75.5 million, or 27.1% of net sales, in the third quarter last year.
Operating Income: Third quarter operating income was $24.8 million, compared to operating income of $15.9 million in the prior year period. Current year operating income includes previously announced charges related to the closure of the Company’s manufacturing facility in Thailand. Prior year operating income includes a reversal of a portion of previously recognized restructuring charges. Third quarter 2021 adjusted operating income (“AOI”) was $30.2 million versus AOI of $28.1 million in third quarter of 2020.
Net Income and EPS: On a GAAP basis, the Company recorded net income of $11.0 million in the third quarter of 2021, or $0.19 per diluted share, compared to third quarter 2020 GAAP net income of $5.9 million, or $0.10 per diluted share. Third quarter 2021 adjusted net income was $16.9 million, or $0.29 per diluted share, versus third quarter 2020 adjusted net income of $16.5 million, or $0.28 per diluted share.
Adjusted EBITDA: In the third quarter of 2021, adjusted EBITDA was $42.0 million. This compares with adjusted EBITDA of $36.9 million in the third quarter of 2020.
First Nine Months 2021 Financial Summary
Sales: Net sales for the first nine months of 2021 were $860.8 million, versus $826.3 million in the prior year period.
Gross profit margin was 36.2% for the first nine months of 2021, a decrease of 180 basis points from the prior year period. Adjusted gross profit margin was 36.7%, a decrease of 179 basis points from adjusted gross profit margin for the prior year period due to higher labor, freight and raw material costs.
SG&A expenses for the first nine months of 2021 were $236.9 million, or 27.5% of net sales, compared to $255.9 million, or 31.0% of net sales in the same period last year. Adjusted SG&A expenses were $234.5 million, or 27.2% of sales, for the first nine months of 2021 compared to $232.9 million, or 28.2% of net sales, in the same period last year.
Operating Income: Operating income for the first nine months of 2021 was $70.9 million, compared to operating loss of $60.2 million in the prior year period. Current year operating income includes previously announced charges related to the closure of the Company’s manufacturing facility in Thailand. Prior year operating income includes a previously announced $121 million non-cash charge for impairment of goodwill and intangible assets, primarily driven by global impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, and a reversal of a portion of previously recognized restructuring charges. AOI was $81.2 million for the first nine months of 2021 versus AOI of $84.9 million in the same period last year.
Net Income and EPS: On a GAAP basis, the Company recorded net income of $33.4 million in the first nine months of 2021, or $0.57 per diluted share, compared to the first nine months of 2020 GAAP net loss of $91.5 million, or a loss of $1.56 per diluted share. Nine-month 2021 adjusted net income was $44.5 million, or $0.75 per diluted share, versus the first nine months of 2020 adjusted net income of $51.2 million, or $0.88 per diluted share.
Adjusted EBITDA: In the first nine months of 2021, adjusted EBITDA was $116.6 million. This compares with adjusted EBITDA of $108.5 million in the first nine months of 2020.
Cash and Debt: The Company had cash on hand of $92.8 million and total debt of $525 million at the end of the third quarter, compared to $103.1 million of cash and $577 million of total debt at the end of fiscal year 2020.
Third Quarter Segment Results
At the beginning of 2021, the Company expanded its financial reporting into two operating and reportable segments: 1) Americas (“AMS”) and 2) Europe, Africa, Asia and Australia (collectively “EAAA”). The realignment solely impacts the Company’s segment reporting and there is no change to previously reported consolidated results. Segment AOI includes allocations of corporate SG&A expenses.
AMS Results:
- Q3 2021 net sales of $176.8 million, up 23.7% versus $142.9 million in the prior year period primarily due to the recovering commercial market.
- Q3 2021 orders were up 34% compared to the prior year period.
- Q3 2021 operating income was $21.7 million compared to $14.9 million in the prior year period.
- Q3 2021 AOI was $21.6 million versus AOI of $20.3 million in the prior year period.
EAAA Results:
- Q3 2021 net sales of $135.9 million, up 0.1% versus $135.8 million in the prior year period.
- Currency fluctuations had an approximately $1.9 million positive impact on Q3 2021 sales as compared to Q3 2020 sales due to strengthening of the Euro, British pound sterling, Chinese Renminbi and Australian dollar against the U.S. dollar.
- Q3 2021 orders were up 12% compared to the prior year period.
- Q3 2021 operating income of $3.1 million compared to $1.0 million in the prior year period.
- Q3 2021 AOI was $8.6 million versus AOI of $7.8 million in the prior year period.
First Nine Months Segment Results
AMS Results:
- Net sales for the first nine months of 2021 were $460.4 million, up 1.8% versus $452.2 million in the prior year period. The prior year period included 40 weeks of net sales, and a strong pre-pandemic first quarter, versus the current year period that includes 39 weeks of net sales and a recovering commercial market.
- Operating income for the first nine months of 2021 was $54.4 million compared to $52.1 million in the prior year period.
- AOI for the first nine months of 2021 was $54.6 million versus AOI of $67.8 million in the prior year period.
EAAA Results:
- Net sales for the first nine months of 2021 were $400.4 million, up 7.0% versus $374.1 million in the prior year period primarily due to favorable currency fluctuations. The prior year period included 40 weeks of net sales, and the current year period includes 39 weeks.
- Currency fluctuations had an approximately $25.6 million positive impact on net sales in the first nine months of 2021 as compared to the prior year period, primarily due to the strengthening of the Euro, British pound sterling, Chinese Renminbi and Australian dollar against the U.S. dollar.
- Operating income for the first nine months of 2021 was $16.4 million compared to an operating loss of $112.4 million in the prior year period. The nine-month period of 2020 includes a non-cash goodwill and intangible asset impairment charge of $118.6 million.
- AOI for the first nine months of 2021 was $26.6 million versus AOI of $17.2 million in the prior year period.
Outlook
There continues to be an impact on the global economy due to COVID-19, and a significant, continuing level of disruption in the global supply chain. As the Company continues to monitor this situation, it is anticipating:
- Net sales in the fourth quarter of 2021 of $320 million to $330 million.
- Adjusted gross profit percentage in the fourth quarter of 2021 of approximately 35.5% to 36.5%.
- Adjusted SG&A expense for the full year of 2021 of approximately $315 million to $319 million.
- Interest & Other expense for the full year of 2021 of approximately $28 million.
- An adjusted effective tax rate for the full year of 2021 of approximately 26%.
- Capital expenditures of approximately $30 million for full year of 2021.
Fully diluted share count at the end of the third quarter of 2021 was 59.1 million shares.
The full text of Interface’s 3Q21 earnings release, including all tables, and an archived replay of its Nov. 5 conference call webcast may be accessed through the Company’s website at: https://investors.interface.com.
The archived version of the webcast will be available at these sites for one year beginning approximately one hour after the call ends.
About Interface
Interface, Inc. is a global flooring company specializing in carbon neutral carpet tile and resilient flooring, including luxury vinyl tile (LVT) and nora® rubber flooring. We help our customers create high-performance interior spaces that support well-being, productivity, and creativity, as well as the sustainability of the planet. Our mission, Climate Take Back™, invites you to join us as we commit to operating in a way that is restorative to the planet and creates a climate fit for life.
Learn more about Interface at interface.com and blog.interface.com, our nora brand at nora.com, our FLOR® brand at FLOR.com, and our Carbon Neutral Floors™ program at interface.com/carbonneutral. Learn more about our carbon negative products at interface.com/carbonnegative.
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