Tableware and glassware maker Libbey Inc. issued a downbeat 3Q 2005 outlook on 17 October 2005, citing a fall in retail and industrial demand.
The company also said 4Q 2005 sales are likely to be at …
Tableware and glassware maker Libbey Inc. issued a downbeat 3Q 2005 outlook on 17 October 2005, citing a fall in retail and industrial demand. The company also said 4Q 2005 sales are likely to be at the low end of its forecast. “Demand from customers clearly weakened in August and September,” said analyst Jim Barrett of CL King & Associates. “Secondly, some retail customers like Wal-Mart Stores Inc. may be ordering below expectations”. Libbey said it expects to report 3Q 2005 sales of USD 135.6 million, up from USD 131.8 million a year earlier, but below its estimates. The Toledo, Ohio-based company said it expects 3Q 2005 earnings of USD 0.30 a share, or between USD 0.31 to USD 0.33 before the costs of a plant shutdown in California. In July 2005, it had forecast profit of USD 0.32 to USD 0.37. Year-earlier earnings were USD 0.34. For the 4Q 2005, Libbey forecasts sales growth of 6%. In July 2005, the firm said it expected an increase of 6 to 8%. Libbey said it was in the process of determining the impact on 4Q 2005 earnings of higher costs for natural gas, transportation and the delivery and manufacturing materials at its Shreveport, Louisiana, facility after recent hurricanes. The company, which exports to more than 90 countries, is raising its international profile with a new plant in China. Production is expected to begin in 2007.