EXHIBIT 99.1
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
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Guest Supply, Inc.
4301 U.S. Highway One Contact: Paul Xenis
P.O. Box 902 Vice President, Finance
Monmouth Junction, NJ 08852 Guest Supply, Inc.
(609) 514-9696 (609) 514-9696
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Guest Supply, Inc. Announces Record First Quarter Results
Monmouth Junction, New Jersey, January 26, 2001/BUSINESSWIRE/-- Guest Supply,
Inc. (NYSE:GSY) today announced record sales and earnings for the first quarter
ended December 29, 2000.
Net sales for the first quarter of fiscal 2001 reached a record $90,314,000, up
13.0% from the $79,910,000 reported for the first quarter of fiscal 2000. Net
income for the first quarter of fiscal 2001 was $2,968,000, compared to
$1,822,000 in fiscal 2000, a gain of 62.9%. Earnings per diluted common share
increased 57.7% to $0.41 for this year's first quarter versus $0.26 in the
comparable period last year.
Commenting on the results, Clifford W. Stanley, President and CEO of Guest
Supply said, "We are pleased to report a gain of 23% in operating income for the
quarter and sales growth of 13%. As a percent of sales, gross margin increased
from 21.5% to 21.8%. In spite of inflationary increases in fuel and other
shipping expenses, as well as continued investment in guestsupply.com and Guest
Purchasing Services, selling, general and administrative expenses remained
constant as a percent of sales. Pretax earnings for the period increased 30.2%
from $3,079,000 to $4,009,000. The decrease in the effective tax rate from 41%
to 26% is primarily the result of a tax benefit attributable to the liquidation
of our New Zealand operations."
Guest Supply, Inc. (the "Company") is a leading supplier of housekeeping and
other operating supplies to the lodging industry and a premier manufacturer of
health and beauty aid products for consumer products companies and retailers.
Guest has achieved leading positions in its markets by focusing on excelling at
design, product development, manufacturing and distribution.
Certain statements made herein may contain forward-looking information about the
Company. The following are some of the most significant factors that may cause
the Company's actual results to differ materially from those described in any
forward-looking statements made by the Company: a downturn in the lodging
industry resulting in lower demand for the Company's products, the loss of or
decline in sales to a major customer, failure to secure new business,
inefficiencies at the Company's manufacturing facility, the inability to
increase prices to customers to compensate for inflationary cost increases,
problems implementing the Company's e-commerce initiative, or a decline in sales
and gross margin as a result of competitive pressures, including from
aggregators on the Internet.
Financial Highlights
(unaudited)
In Thousands
except per share amounts
Thirteen Weeks Thirteen Weeks
Ended Ended
Dec. 29, 2000 Dec. 31, 1999
Sales $ 90,314 $ 79,910
Cost of sales 70,608 62,765
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Gross profit 19,706 17,145
Selling, gen. & admin. expenses 14,848 13,199
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Operating income 4,858 3,946
Interest expense 849 867
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Pretax income 4,009 3,079
Income tax expense 1,041 1,257
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Net income $ 2,968 $ 1,822
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Earnings per common share:
Basic $ 0.45 $ 0.28
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Diluted $ 0.41 $ 0.26
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Weighted average common shares:
Basic 6,633 6,418
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Diluted 7,399 7,282
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Supplemental financial information
EBITDA $ 6,473 $ 5,412
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Note: Certain reclassifications have been made to prior year amounts to conform
to the current year presentation.