Apogee Enterprises Reports Fiscal 2024 Fourth Quarter and Full Year Results

Apogee Enterprises, Inc. reported its fiscal 2024 fourth-quarter and full-year results. The fourth-quarter and full-year results for fiscal 2024 include the impact of an additional week of operations compared to fiscal 2023. The Company reported the following selected financial results.

Financial Highlights

• Fourth-quarter net sales increase 5%, to $362 million
• Fourth-quarter diluted EPS of $0.71; adjusted diluted EPS grows 33%, to $1.14
• Full year net sales of $1.42 billion
• Full-year diluted EPS of $4.51; full-year adjusted diluted EPS increases 20% to $4.77
• Full-year operating margin improves to 9.4%; adjusted operating margin improves to 10.3%
• Full-year cash flow from operations reaches record $204 million
• Provides initial outlook for fiscal 2025

“Fiscal 2024 was another great year for Apogee, with record adjusted EPS and cash flow, and adjusted operating margins and ROIC that exceeded the targets we set at our investor day in 2021,” said Ty R. Silberhorn, Chief Executive Officer. “Through executing our strategy, we have achieved a step change in performance and profitability, providing a stronger foundation from which to operate. We’ve driven sustainable cost and productivity improvements, significantly improved operational execution, and refocused our business to deliver differentiated product and service offerings that provide more value for our customers.”

Mr. Silberhorn continued, “As we look ahead to fiscal 2025, our team is working to build on the gains we’ve achieved, while positioning the Company to drive long-term shareholder value. We are approaching fiscal 2025 with a growth mindset, continuing to diversify our business, strengthen our product and service offerings, and invest to position the Company for long-term profitable growth.”

Project Fortify

On January 30, 2024, the Company announced strategic actions to further streamline its business operations, enable a more efficient cost model, and better position the Company for profitable growth (referred to as “Project Fortify”). During the fourth quarter, the Company incurred $12.4 million of pre-tax charges related to Project Fortify. $5.5 million of these charges were included in cost of sales and $6.9 million were included in selling, general, and administrative (“SG&A”) expenses. The Company continues to expect a total of $16 million to $18 million of pre-tax charges in connection with Project Fortify leading to annualized cost savings of $12 million to $14 million. The Company expects approximately 60% of these savings will be realized in fiscal 2025, and the remainder in fiscal 2026. The Company expects that approximately 70% of the savings will be realized in the Architectural Framing Systems Segment, 20% in the Architectural Services Segment, and 10% in the Corporate Segment, with the plan to be substantially complete in the third quarter of fiscal 2025.

Fourth-Quarter Consolidated Results 

(Fourth Quarter Fiscal 2024 compared to Fourth Quarter Fiscal 2023)

• Net sales increased 5.2% to $361.8 million compared to $344.1 million, primarily due to improved pricing and mix, partially offset by lower volumes.
• Gross profit increased 13.3% to $88.5 million and gross margin improved by 170 bps to 24.4%, primarily driven by higher pricing, improved product mix, and the impact of cost saving initiatives, partially offset by restructuring charges related to Project Fortify.
• SG&A expenses increased $14.2 million to 18.4% of net sales compared to 15.2%, driven by restructuring charges related to Project Fortify and higher wages and benefits expense.
• Operating income was $21.9 million, and operating margin was 6.0%. Adjusted operating income grew 33.1% to $34.3 million and adjusted operating margin increased 200 basis points to 9.5% primarily driven by higher pricing, improved product mix, and the impact of cost saving initiatives, partially offset by higher wages and benefits expense.
• Other expense was $1.6 million reflecting the impact of an investment market-valuation adjustment.
• Diluted earnings per share (“EPS”) was $0.71 compared to $0.91. Adjusted diluted EPS grew 32.6% to $1.14 driven by higher adjusted operating income and lower interest expense, partially offset by higher Other expense.

Full-Year Consolidated Results

(Fiscal 2024 compared to Fiscal 2023)

• Net sales were $1.42 billion, compared to $1.44 billion, primarily reflecting lower volumes, partially offset by improved product mix and higher pricing.
• Operating margin improved to 9.4%. Adjusted operating margin increased 160 basis points to 10.3% primarily driven by higher pricing, improved product mix, and the impact of cost saving initiatives, partially offset by a less favorable mix of projects in the Architectural Services Segment, higher salary and benefits costs, and the inflationary impact of higher costs.
• Other income was $2.1 million reflecting the impact of a $4.7 million pre-tax gain related to a New Markets Tax Credit, partially offset by an investment market-valuation adjustment.
• Income tax expense was $29.6 million, compared to $12.5 million primarily driven by a $14.8 million tax deduction for worthless stock and other related discrete tax benefits in the prior year.
• Diluted EPS was $4.51 compared to $4.64. Adjusted diluted EPS grew 19.8% to a record $4.77 driven by higher adjusted operating income and lower interest expense, partially offset by higher Other expense.

Fourth Quarter Segment Results 

(Fourth Quarter Fiscal 2024 Compared to Fourth Quarter Fiscal 2023)

Architectural Framing Systems

Architectural Framing Systems net sales were $139.2 million, compared to $148.6 million, primarily reflecting lower volume. Operating income was $6.8 million, which included $6.0 million of restructuring charges related to Project Fortify. Adjusted operating income was $12.8 million, or 9.2% of net sales, compared to $15.6 million, or 10.5% of net sales, primarily reflecting the impact of lower volume and a less favorable mix of projects, partially offset by the impact of cost savings initiatives. Segment backlog² at the end of the quarter was $200.7 million, an increase of 9.1% compared to $183.9 million at the end of the third fiscal quarter.

Architectural Glass

Architectural Glass net sales grew 18.2%, to $96.2 million, driven by improved pricing and mix. Operating income increased to $18.9 million, or 19.7% of net sales, compared to $9.5 million, or 11.7% of net sales, primarily driven by the impact of improved pricing and mix, partially offset by cost inflation.

Architectural Services

Architectural Services net sales grew 7.9% to $106.3 million, primarily due to a more favorable mix of projects. Operating income was $3.6 million, which included $2.5 million of restructuring charges related to Project Fortify. Adjusted operating income increased to $6.2 million, or 5.8% of net sales, compared to $3.7 million, or 3.7% of net sales, primarily driven by a more favorable mix of projects. Segment backlog at the end of the quarter was $807.8 million, a 4.0% increase compared to $776.5 million at the end of the third fiscal quarter.

Large-Scale Optical

Large-Scale Optical net sales were $27.1 million, compared to $27.2 million, primarily due to lower volume, partially offset by a more favorable mix. Operating income grew to $6.9 million, or 25.6% of net sales, compared to $5.8 million, or 21.1% of net sales, primarily driven by the improved mix.

Corporate and Other

Corporate and other expense increased to $14.5 million, compared to $8.8 million, primarily due to $3.9 million of restructuring charges related to Project Fortify, and higher wages and benefits.

Financial Condition

Net cash provided by operating activities in the fourth quarter improved to $74.9 million, compared to $51.6 million in last year’s fourth quarter. For the full year, net cash provided by operating activities increased to a record $204.2 million, compared to $102.7 million in the prior year, primarily driven by favorable working capital changes. Capital expenditures for the fiscal year were $43.2 million, compared to $45.2 million last year. During the year, the Company returned $33.0 million of cash to shareholders through share repurchases and dividend payments.

Year-end long-term debt was $62.0 million, compared to $169.8 million at the end of fiscal 2023. The net leverage ratio³ as of the end of the fiscal year improved to 0.1x compared to 0.9x at the end of fiscal 2023.

Fiscal 2025 Outlook

The Company expects a net sales decline in the range of 4% to 7%. This range includes approximately 2 percentage points of decline related to fiscal 2025 reverting to a 52-week year, and approximately 1 percentage point of decline related to the actions of Project Fortify to eliminate certain lower-margin product and service offerings.

The Company expects diluted EPS in the range of $4.25 to $4.55 and adjusted diluted EPS in the range of $4.35 to $4.75⁴. The Company expects the impact of the reversion to a 52-week year will reduce adjusted diluted EPS by approximately $0.20 compared to fiscal 2024 and that there will be no material impact to adjusted diluted EPS related to the adverse net sales impact of Project Fortify.

The Company’s outlook assumes an adjusted effective tax rate of approximately 24.5%, and capital expenditures between $40 to $50 million.

About Apogee Enterprises

Apogee Enterprises, Inc. (Nasdaq: APOG) is a leading provider of architectural products and services for enclosing buildings, and high-performance glass and acrylic products used for preservation, energy conservation, and enhanced viewing. Headquartered in Minneapolis, MN, our portfolio of industry-leading products and services includes high-performance architectural glass, windows, curtainwall, storefront and entrance systems, integrated project management and installation services, as well as value-added glass and acrylic for custom picture framing and displays. For more information, visit www.apog.com.

Contact:

Jeff Huebschen – Vice President, Investor Relations & Communications – ir@apog.com – (952) 487-7538

Source: Apogee Enterprises, Inc.