Crane NXT Co, a maker of products including ones for the gaming sector, reported net sales of US$403.5 million for the third quarter this year, up 14.3 percent from the prior-year period.
The company posted net income attributable to common shareholders of US$47.1 million for the three months to September 30, down from US$51.9 million a year earlier, the firm said in a Wednesday announcement.
Crane NXT announced a dividend of US$0.16 per share for the fourth quarter of 2024, payable on December 11.
The company said its third-quarter revenue was “primarily driven by a US$32.3 million … sales benefit” following the US$270-million acquisition earlier this year of OpSec Security Group Ltd, a provider of brand protection and authentication services.
Crane NXT recorded US$16.7 million in core sales during the period, a 4.7-percent increase year-on-year.
The firm said its third-quarter operating profit was US$75.0 million, down 5.9 percent from a year ago.
Operating profit margin was 18.6 percent in the July to September period, compared with 22.6 percent in the prior-year period, “primarily reflecting an unfavourable product mix, and the impact of the OpSec Security acquisition, partially offset by productivity gains, and the impact of cost saving actions,” stated the company.
The group’s Crane Payment Innovations (CPI) business recorded net sales of US$224.9 million in the three months to September 30, up 1.5 percent year-on-year. The segment’s operating profit rose by 8.2 percent, to US$64.6 million.
“Our third quarter results were in line with our expectations,” said Aaron Saak, Crane NXT’s president and chief executive, in prepared remarks. “We repaid approximately US$65 million of outstanding debt in the quarter and reduced our net leverage to approximately 1.7 times.”
He added: “With our strong balance sheet and operational performance, we have ample liquidity for disciplined merger and acquisitions to create further value for our shareholders.”
In mid-October, Crane NXT announced a definitive agreement with De La Rue Plc to acquire the latter’s authentication business for GBP300 million (US392.3 million) in cash.
Late last month, Crane NXT said it had completed the acquisition of the “smart packaging” assets of TruTag Technologies Inc. Terms of the acquisition were not disclosed.
Mr Saak said as cited in Wednesday’s press release: “These transactions, along with the acquisition of OpSec Security which we completed earlier this year, continue to expand and diversify the company and accelerate our strategy as a market leader in providing trusted technology solutions that secure, detect, and authenticate our customers’ most valuable assets.”
